Makes maiden investment in Mynvax, a biotech start-up focused on developing novel recombinant vaccines for human respiratory viral diseases
Hyderabad: Dr. B.S. Ajaikumar, Doctorpreneur, Founder and Executive Chairman of HealthCare Global Enterprises Ltd (HCG), has announced the launch of Inviga Healthcare Fund (IHF), a thematic healthcare-focused private equity fund headquartered in Bengaluru. Co-founded by Ajay Garg, Founder and Managing Director of Equirus Capital, IHF marks a significant step towards revolutionizing the Indian healthcare landscape by enhancing accessibility, affordability and quality of healthcare for all sections of society. Having secured an initial close of US $20 million, the fund is poised to empower entrepreneurs and drive meaningful change across the entire Indian healthcare value chain.
Dr. Ajaikumar, Founder, Inviga Healthcare Fund and Executive Chairman of HealthCare Global Enterprises Ltd (HCG), shared his vision for Inviga Healthcare Fund, stating, “In my over 35 years as a doctor-entrepreneur in India, I have witnessed first-hand both the strengths and weaknesses of our healthcare system. Inviga Health Fund is my response which embodies my desire to provide high-quality egalitarian healthcare to all sections of society, while supporting and positioning doctor/healthcare entrepreneurs as primary drivers in the business. Through our investments, we will support the blossoming Indian healthcare entrepreneur ecosystem, foster clinical excellence, focus tenaciously on quality of outcomes, drive deep social impact and help build businesses on sustainable vectors.”
Ajay Garg, Co-Founder, Inviga Healthcare Fund, emphasized the transformative potential of the fund, stating, “We see the prospect of transforming the Indian healthcare landscape in a meaningful way, one investment at a time. A doctor-driven thematic healthcare and life sciences fund in India is a rarity. This gives us a unique vantage point that helps transcend critical technical barriers that otherwise typically exist between healthcare entrepreneurs and their financiers, and creates win-win situations that not only benefit the business and investors, but also contribute significantly to the progress of Indian healthcare.”
In its maiden investment, the Bengaluru-based Inviga Healthcare Fund has announced support for Mynvax, a biotech start-up focused on developing novel recombinant vaccines for human respiratory viral diseases, including seasonal influenza and COVID-19. Mynvax is co-founded by Prof. Raghavan Varadarajan and Dr. Gautham Nadig, Professor and alumnus respectively of the Molecular Biophysics Unit at the Indian Institute of Science. The Company was incubated at the FSID, IISc, Bengaluru and aims to revolutionize vaccine development by creating a platform that promises affordable and facile manufacturing, higher effectiveness, a broader spectrum of coverage than existing vaccines and simplified distribution.
Rakshith Rangarajan, Fund Manager at Inviga Healthcare Fund, highlighted the impact of Mynvax’s innovations, stating, “The current options globally are riddled with technological inadequacies that have substantially rendered the flu vaccine a seasonal friend with limited scalability, making it accessible primarily to the affluent, unless subsidized. The innovations at Mynvax, led by its highly qualified team, have indeed made tangible the prospect of an improved flu shot that can finally find its way into the hands of the lesser privileged in India and across the globe. This has far-reaching positive societal and economic implications, and resonates with the fund’s values of democratizing healthcare, its commitment to Indian healthcare entrepreneurship and technological innovation and excellence.”
Inviga will support healthcare and pharmaceutical/life science enterprises throughout the entire value chain, utilizing its extensive sector-specific knowledge, global connections, and a distinctive blend of entrepreneurial, clinical, investment, banking, and executive management expertise.
For more information about Inviga Healthcare Fund and investment opportunities, visit www.inviga.in.