Theodorus III

What Theodorus III does

Theodorus is a Brussels-based venture capital fund management company founded in 2003 by the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) as its first professional investment vehicle for academic spin-offs. The firm manages four successive funds — Theodorus I (evergreen, 2003), II (5.4M€, 2006), III (20.25M€, 2012), and IV (42M€ at launch, 2018; 38M€ post second closure in 2020) — totaling over 70M€ in assets under management. Theodorus specializes in seed and early-stage investments in life sciences (biotech, medtech) and high-tech / engineering spin-offs, with priority access to ULB's pipeline of roughly 20 spin-off projects per year and up to 15% of Theodorus III capital permitted outside the ULB ecosystem.

The fund invests initial tickets of 250k€ to 2.5M€ per company, typically as lead investor and syndicating rounds with co-investors — the firm reports an average 12x financial leverage on its commitments, meaning each euro invested mobilizes approximately 12 euros of total deal capital. As of end 2019, Theodorus had completed roughly 40 investments, achieved an average 3x multiple, and supported the creation of 600+ jobs through portfolio companies. Notable exits include Ogeda (acquired by Astellas Pharma for 800M€ in April 2017), Euro Heat Pipes (acquired by Airbus Defence and Space in 2017), MaSTherCell (acquired by Catalent in February 2020), Bone Therapeutics (Euronext IPO 2015, 32M€ raised), and Henogen (acquired by Novasep in 2009).

Revenue is generated through traditional fund management economics: management fees on assets under management plus carried interest on successful exits. Theodorus's LPs are predominantly Belgian institutional investors (SFPI-FPIM, Région Bruxelles-Capitale, Belfius, BNP Paribas Fortis, Sofina, AXA, Ethias, Sambrinvest, Finance.Brussels) supplemented from 2018 by Quebec institutional investors (Fonds de solidarité FTQ, Teralys Capital). The firm operates from Brussels and, since 2020, Montreal, where it partners with research commercialization organizations (Univalor, Aligo Innovation, Sovar) and consortia (MEDTEQ, CQDM, IriCor, CRIAQ) to source deals and enable cross-Atlantic expansion.

Name

Theodorus III

Legal name

Theodorus

Website

http://www.theodorus.be

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Theodorus is a Brussels-based venture capital fund manager, founded in 2003 by Université Libre de Bruxelles, that invests seed and early-stage capital (250k€–2.5M€ per company) into ULB spin-offs and other life sciences and high-tech startups across Belgium and, since 2020, Quebec, Canada, managing over 70M€ across four funds.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital Fund Management

NAICS

Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B) (FSANAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Early-Stage Venture Capital (Pre-Seed/Seed) (FSANAAAA)

Keywords

• Venture capital fund
• Seed stage investing
• Life sciences financing
• Academic spin-offs
• Early-stage investments

Headquarters

HQ city

Brussels

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Fund Management: Theodorus generates revenue through management fees charged on funds under management and carried interest (performance fees) realized upon successful exits of portfolio companies. The fund's financial performance ranks among the top quartile of best performing Venture Capital Funds according to Pitchbook 2017.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Theodorus III is a €20.25M closed venture capital fund (incorporated 2012) that invests €250k to €2.5M per company in seed and early-stage life sciences, medtech, biotech, and high-tech engineering spin-offs, primarily from Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) and selected non-ULB startups (up to 15% of funding). It acts as lead investor, structures financing rounds and investor syndicates, and supports portfolio companies from creation through exit (trade sales, IPOs, or industrial buy-outs).

Product overview

Theodorus is a venture capital fund management company (not a technology product company) that manages four investment funds (Theodorus I, II, III, and IV) focused on seed and early-stage investments in biotech, medtech, digital, and engineering applications. The funds range from Theodorus I (the evergreen ULB fund created in 2003) to Theodorus IV (a 42M€ fund launched in 2018 with international expansion to Quebec). The investment size varies from 250k€ to 2.5M€ per company. The company's primary service is providing financing and support to researchers and entrepreneurs to create innovative spin-off companies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Theodorus I: The evergreen fund of the Université Libre de Bruxelles, created in 2003
• Theodorus II
• Theodorus III
• Theodorus IV

Products and services

• Theodorus III Fund €20.25M closed venture capital fund providing seed and early-stage equity financing (€250k–€2.5M per company) for life sciences, medtech, biotech, and high-tech engineering spin-offs, primarily from Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) and selected non-ULB startups (up to 15% of funding). Theodorus acts as lead investor and structures financing rounds and investor syndicates.

Quantifiable outcome

• Top quartile performance among VC funds (Pitchbook 2017)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounded in 1834, ULB is a highly innovative private research university with 26,000 students, 3,550 scientists, and 20 spin-off projects per year. Theodorus has priority access to ULB R&D outcomes and spin-offs.
• Aligo InnovationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechnology transfer organization in Canada. Structured partnership for Theodorus IV to access Canadian research ecosystem.
• UnilavorcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechnology transfer organization of Université de Montréal. Partnership enables Theodorus to access Quebec research commercialization.
• CRIAQcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerQuebec-based research consortium for aerospace and industrial innovation. Partnership structured through Theodorus IV.
• IriCorcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerQuebec-based research consortium. Partnership structured for Theodorus IV North American operations.
• Agile MVminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerQuebec-based incubator. First incubator partner for Theodorus IV in Montreal.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Vesalius Biocapital: Belgian/Luxembourg-based venture capital firm specializing in early- and growth-stage life sciences investments. Closest direct peer given overlapping geography, life sciences focus, and similar fund size range, both serving European biotech spin-offs.
• Capricorn Partners: Belgian-based independent venture capital and growth equity firm managing several early-stage technology and life sciences funds (Capricorn ICT, Health, Cleantech). Directly comparable given Belgian origin, multi-fund structure, and early-stage technology focus.
• Innovation Industries: Dutch deep-tech and life sciences venture capital firm that invests in seed to growth stages, with strong academic spin-off deal flow from Dutch technical universities. Comparable fund size, early-stage focus, and academic-origin deal sourcing.
• Novo Seeds: Early-stage life sciences venture arm of Novo Holdings, investing in seed and Series A biotech and medtech. Comparable seed-to-Series A life sciences focus, academic spin-off sourcing, and check size range.

Broad incumbents

• Gimv: Listed Belgian investment company with a long history of growth capital and venture investments across life sciences, technology, and sustainable cities. Larger incumbent with broader sector coverage but comparable Belgian-anchored early-stage mandate.
• Forbion: Leading European life sciences venture capital firm with multiple billion-EUR funds investing across all stages. Larger incumbent in the same European life sciences VC category, with comparable biotech/medtech focus but materially larger check sizes.
• LSP (Life Sciences Partners): Amsterdam-based venture capital firm focused on life sciences and medtech investments, with multiple funds across stages. Comparable European life sciences focus and stage mix, but with larger fund vintages.

Regional players

• PMV: Flemish regional investment company (Flanders) providing venture and growth capital to Flemish startups and scale-ups. Operates in a different Belgian region than Theodorus (Brussels/Wallonia) but serves a comparable university spin-off and early-stage investor role.
• adMare BioInnovations: Canadian life sciences venture firm and company builder focused on academic and biotech innovation. Partner-organization of Theodorus in Quebec; comparable academic spin-off mandate but operating in North America.
• Sambrinvest: Belgian regional investment company for the Charleroi area providing seed and growth capital. Strategic LP and regional peer of Theodorus with similar early-stage Belgian investment scope but different geographic focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments22 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Theodorus III