The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Angelini Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of Angelini Industries, have signed a groundbreaking €150 million financing deal to back European biotechnology and digital health startups.
Each partner will contribute €75 million over the next six years, marking the EIB’s first-ever agreement with a corporate venture capital in the healthcare sector.
The partnership targets seven to ten startups across biotechnology, medical technology, and digital health, focusing on companies with solutions ready for market launch.
“Initiatives like this strengthen Europe’s ability to lead technological innovation and generate tangible benefits for people, patients and businesses,” said EIB Vice-President Gelsomina Vigliotti. “Investing in biotechnology and digital health is vital, as it accelerates research, improves the quality of care, and supports the growth of companies able to bring cutting-edge solutions to market.”
Presented today at Angelini Ventures’ Rome headquarters, the initiative aligns with TechEU, the EIB Group’s €70 billion investment programme aimed at boosting innovation and technological leadership in Europe between 2025 and 2027. The program aims to mobilize €250 billion in investment in the real economy.
Founded in 2022 with €300 million from Angelini Industries, Angelini Ventures has already invested €125 million in 22 startups.
“This important agreement with the EIB enables us to bring our group’s commitment to innovation through venture capital to a European strategic context,” said Angelini Industries CEO Sergio Marullo di Condojanni.
“Being chosen by the EIB for an ambitious project aiming to consolidate Europe’s role in innovation and health is an opportunity to work towards the common goal of turning researchers’ excellent ideas into products and services with a positive impact on people’s lives and the economic development of European countries.”
Angelini Ventures CEO Paolo Di Giorgio added, “The agreement with the EIB is a key step in strengthening our international presence and global vision. This development path is essential to accelerating market access for talent and innovative projects, facilitating strategic partnerships in health and offering scaling opportunities for investments and partners."
"These elements are fundamental to speeding up growth and creating value in the healthcare and biotechnology sector, promoting European innovation, competitiveness and social impact on an international level.”
As the first investment under the new partnership, Angelini Ventures and the EIB plan to co-invest in the second financing round of French biopharmaceutical company Adcytherix, which develops innovative Antibody-Drug Conjugates (ADCs) to enhance precision, reduce toxicity, and address resistance to current treatments. The first round, closed in October, was led by Bpifrance and co-led by Kurma Partners, Andera Partners, and Angelini Ventures.
The deal also supports broader European startup ambitions. The European Commission’s Startup and Scale Up Strategy highlights two major hurdles for startups: transitioning from research to market and scaling into established companies. Collaborations like the EIB-Angelini partnership aim to overcome these challenges, accelerating growth, improving competitiveness, and boosting the potential for European IPOs.
With nearly 30% of European unicorns moving outside the EU between 2008 and 2021, initiatives like this could help keep innovation—and economic value—within Europe.
