venBio Partners
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2011
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What venBio Partners does
venBio Partners is a San Francisco-based life sciences venture capital firm founded in 2011 that invests exclusively in clinical-stage biotechnology companies developing novel therapeutics for unmet medical needs. The firm operates with a small team (1-10 employees) across offices in San Francisco and Seattle, and applies a proprietary "Four D's" investment thesis focused on real drugs, real differentiation, real data, and real diseases. Portfolio companies span multiple therapeutic modalities and stages, including radioligand therapies (Abdera Therapeutics), immunology bispecifics (Caldera Therapeutics), inflammatory/autoimmune biologics (Attovia Therapeutics), FcRn antagonists (Parabilis Medicines), vaccines (Vicebio, acquired by Sanofi in July 2025 for US$1.6B), and clinical-stage assets across IBD, hereditary angioedema, and smoking cessation.
The firm has raised five institutional venture funds, with cumulative committed capital of approximately $1.1 billion per the company website (fourth fund of $550M in 2021 and fifth fund of $528M in 2024). venBio's revenue model follows standard VC economics: recurring management fees on committed/invested capital plus carried interest on realized exits. Limited Partners include strategic partners (large biotech and pharma companies) and qualified financial investors (e.g., RA Capital, Fidelity, Janus Henderson, Wellington, Omega Funds, ARCH, GV, General Catalyst). The firm's go-to-market is relationship-driven, leveraging LP diligence participation, expert advisor networks, and syndication with leading healthcare investors to source and validate deals. Notable outcomes include one FDA-approved drug from the portfolio and the 2025 Sanofi acquisition of Vicebio, validating the firm's positioning approach of building companies toward strategic acquisition from inception.
venBio Partners firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- venBio Partners
- Legal name
- venBio Partners LLC
- Website
- https://venbio.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2011
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
venBio Partners industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Life Sciences Venture Capital
- NAICS
- Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles (525), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)
- SIC
- Finance Services (6199)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Corporate Strategic Partnership & Ecosystem Investment Arms (FSANAHAF)
Keywords
Where venBio Partners is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
venBio Partners business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
venBio Partners product offering
Product offeringCore offering
venBio Partners is a life sciences venture capital firm founded in 2011 and headquartered in San Francisco that invests in biotechnology companies developing novel therapeutics. The firm manages venture capital funds with committed capital of nearly $1.1 billion (per firm website) — or close to $2 billion including the fifth fund of $528 million — and partners with entrepreneurs to build innovative therapeutic companies.
Product overview
venBio Partners is a life sciences venture capital investment firm that does not offer products or services in the traditional sense. The firm manages venture funds investing in biotechnology and life sciences companies developing novel therapeutics for unmet medical needs. As an investment firm, their offering consists of venture capital funding, portfolio company support, and investment management services for their limited partners.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- venBio Partners Venture Capital Funds (Fund I–V)
Companies that use venBio Partners
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
venBio Partners technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
venBio Partners partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- UniQuestcoreLicensed Molecular Clamp technology from University of Queensland to Vicebio. Technology transfer and licensing partnership for vaccine development.
- Qyuns TherapeuticscoreLicensed exclusive global development and commercialization rights to CLD-423 to Caldera Therapeutics.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
venBio Partners competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- 5AM Ventures: 5AM Ventures is an early-stage life sciences venture firm investing in biotech and platform technologies. It is directly comparable to venBio in stage, sector focus, and check size discipline.
- Atlas Venture: Atlas Venture is a leading early-stage life sciences venture capital firm that builds and invests in biotech companies. It co-invested with venBio in Caldera Therapeutics and shares a comparable stage focus, sector specialization, and syndicate network.
- OrbiMed: OrbiMed is one of the largest dedicated healthcare investment firms globally, investing across private and public biotech, medtech, and healthcare services. It is a natural peer given its pure-play life sciences focus, scale, and late-stage participation.
- Frazier Life Sciences: Frazier Life Sciences is a dedicated healthcare and life sciences venture firm investing across public and private biotech. It has co-led multiple rounds with venBio (e.g., Attovia, Achieve Life Sciences) and operates with a similar biotech-only mandate and stage focus.
- RA Capital Management: RA Capital is a crossover-focused healthcare investment manager with significant biotech private and public investing. It co-led Parabilis' $305M Series F alongside venBio's syndicate, making it a closely comparable late-stage biotech investor.
- Versant Ventures: Versant Ventures is a dedicated healthcare venture firm investing in biotech, medtech, and digital health across stages. It co-led Abdera Therapeutics alongside venBio and shares a comparable biotech-focused, multi-stage investment model.
- ARCH Venture Partners: ARCH Venture Partners is a long-established life sciences and technology venture firm with deep biotech expertise. It participated in Parabilis' Series F alongside venBio and is a directly comparable institutional life sciences investor.
- Medicxi: Medicxi is a healthcare-focused venture firm that originated Vicebio and co-invested in subsequent rounds. Its stage focus, sector specialization, and syndicate relationship with venBio make it a closely comparable European-anchored life sciences peer.
Emerging players
- Third Rock Ventures: Third Rock Ventures is a biotech venture creator that conceives, builds, and launches new therapeutic companies. While structurally different, it is comparable to venBio in its life sciences focus, operating involvement, and mission of building category-defining biotechs.
Broad incumbents
- New Enterprise Associates (NEA): NEA is a large, multi-stage venture firm with a significant healthcare/biotech practice alongside technology investments. It is broader than venBio but competes for similar biotech deals and represents a larger, more diversified incumbent.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
venBio Partners social profiles
Digital presencevenBio Partners financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
venBio Partners leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
venBio Partners funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
venBio Partners M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments103 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about venBio Partners
What does venBio Partners do?
venBio Partners is a life sciences venture capital firm founded in 2011 and headquartered in San Francisco that invests in biotechnology companies developing novel therapeutics. The firm manages venture capital funds with committed capital of nearly $1.1 billion (per firm website) — or close to $2 billion including the fifth fund of $528 million — and partners with entrepreneurs to build innovative therapeutic companies.
Is venBio Partners a public or private company?
venBio Partners is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was venBio Partners founded?
venBio Partners was founded in 2011. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is venBio Partners based?
venBio Partners is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
Who are venBio Partners's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are 5AM Ventures, Atlas Venture, OrbiMed, Frazier Life Sciences, RA Capital Management, Versant Ventures, ARCH Venture Partners and Medicxi. Third Rock Ventures is listed as an emerging player. New Enterprise Associates (NEA) is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does venBio Partners have an API?
No public API is recorded for venBio Partners.
What industry is venBio Partners in?
venBio Partners's product category is Life Sciences Venture Capital. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAHAF, Corporate Strategic Partnership & Ecosystem Investment Arms. Its NAICS code is 525 and its SIC code is 6199.