Roche Venture Fund (RVF), the corporate VC unit of healthcare multinational Roche, plans to significantly increase equity commitments to portfolio companies as holding periods are extended, Anja Harmeier, head of the fund, told Mergermarket.

This is partly a function of a slowdown in biotech listings. The habit of running dual-track IPO and trade sale processes has been replaced by a more conservative wait-and-see approach, requiring longer financial runways. At the same time, M&A interest has shifted to later-stage assets.

“We are conscious of the costs of late clinical stages, especially in later stages that ideally lead to human proof of concept,” she said. “The financial needs of our portfolio companies have grown; we are aware of that and building reserves into our equation. Our mission is to build sustainable companies and empower them with the resources required to develop innovative medicines for people who need them the most.”

RVF – a CHF 750m (EUR 794m) evergreen vehicle active in pharma, diagnostics, and digital health – has invested an average of CHF 12m per company over the past two decades, often participating across multiple rounds. In future, this figure is expected to rise to CHF 30m.

Harmeier pointed to several examples of late-stage M&A activity: Novartis’s USD 8.7bn acquisition of AveXis and Merck’s USD 1.85bn purchase of Pandion Therapeutics, as well as mergers that saw Disc Medicine combine with Gemini Therapeutics and EnLiven Therapeutics join forces with Imara Therapeutics.

Meanwhile, RVF has multiple portfolio companies that have raised sizeable rounds in the past 24 months as they move into more advanced stages of clinical development.

Notably, Noema Pharma, which focuses on central nervous system disorders, extended its Series B to CHF 130m and SpliceBio secured a USD 135m Series B for gene therapies. Others include NMD Pharma and Cour Therapeutics.

This shift comes a matter of months after Harmeier took up her leadership role at RVF. She previously spent four years as CEO of Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund-backed Rewind Therapeutics and before that worked as a VC investor and as a neuroscientist and project leader in drug discovery at Roche.

Taking the lead

While increasing the size of the evergreen vehicle has been contemplated and will be discussed with Roche’s management, for the time being the team is focused on building the portfolio. In doing this, Harmeier hopes to participate as lead investor in more rounds, something RVF historically has not done.

Her reasoning is that the scientific and regulatory expertise of parent Roche has greater value in the current climate characterised by companies progressing into the later stages of clinical development on their own. Even as lead investor with a larger stake – and the greater influence this endows – RVF would aim to own no more than 20% of portfolio companies, Harmeier added.

The fund receives 100-200 pitches per month and makes a concerted effort to provide feedback on each one. In situations where a company’s technology is particularly intriguing, it moves quickly to interact with founders and management teams. On average, there are three to four new and follow-on deals every year.

Two have been announced so far in 2026, both Series B stage: a follow-on investment in Mironid, which raised USD 46m, and a commitment to EpiBiologics, which hasn’t disclosed the size of its round.

There is thematic crossover between RVF and Roche, which has a CHF 280bn market capitalisation and supplies drugs and in-vitro diagnostics across oncology, infectious diseases, immunology, metabolism, and neuroscience. However, the corporate VC unit was established in 2002 with a primary remit to provide financial returns to its parent.

Roche has acquired businesses backed by RVF: it bought Stratos Genomics in 2020 for an undisclosed sum and Good Therapeutics in 2022 for USD 250m in cash plus milestone payments. When the parent expresses an interest in a portfolio company, RVF introduces M&A and business development teams to founders and then steps away. It is usually not part of the conversations that ensue, Harmeier said.

The vast majority of exits have been by IPO or sales to other strategic investors. RVF helps shape these outcomes via corporate oversight – it has board seats or observer rights at portfolio companies – as well as through its expertise and industry resources.

EnLiven, which specialises in clinical-stage precision oncology, is a case in point. RVF joined a USD 55m Series A round in 2020 – alongside the likes of OrbiMed and 5AM Ventures – and then helped facilitate a reverse merger with Nasdaq-listed Imara three years later. Mitchell Mutz, a former senior investment director at RVF, served as a board observer and sourced and led the Imara transaction.

All senior team members have scientific backgrounds. Harmeier referenced Monique Schiersing, a senior investment director with wide biotech experience and a degree in microbiology; Gabriela Ecco, an investment director who has a doctorate in biotechnology and bioengineering; and Simon Greenwood, a senior investment director who had a 15-year career at Roche biotech unit Genentech.

Recent hires include Bryan Faust, who joined from VC firm Andreessen Horowitz and holds a doctorate in biophysics.

Leveraging expertise

This expertise is considered a key selling point for RVF when engaging with biotech entrepreneurs. The competitive advantage is compounded by presenting opportunities to interact with and tap into the regulatory, drug development, and scientific knowledge base of Roche.

“I have been a CEO of a biotech myself,” Harmeier added. “There is a value in having a board member who understands the day-to-day business, who can help you not only financially, but also scientifically, and strategically. That’s an add-on that we can offer – we know we can help companies in developing better drugs.”

It is also able to mobilise a network of varied global syndication partners for larger funding rounds. Crossover and pre-IPO rounds often require participation from US-based investors, and Switzerland-headquartered RVF maintains these relationships via its presence in the biotech hub of San Francisco.

While therapeutics is the main investment focus, diagnostics and healthcare technology are represented in the portfolio as well. RVF has usually come in as a Series A investor at the preclinical stage for developers of therapeutics and 12-18 months away from launch for diagnostics companies. Beyond that, the strategy is disease-area and modalities agnostic, concentrating instead on areas of unmet medical need.

Harmeier sees the identification of new disease biomarkers as a key deal driver because it has led to changes in regulatory pathways, enabling faster approvals for the likes of bone and kidney disease treatments. She singled out oncology as a medical field that continues to see significant momentum in terms of drug discovery.

There are currently more than 30 active investments – some were the culmination of years-long tracking efforts, others are early-stage bets where RVF had to build conviction in a matter of weeks.

Series A has been the typical entry point, with additional capital committed as companies grow. However, the shift towards writing larger cheques has been accompanied by more initial engagements at a later stage. Harmeier cited the recent EpiBiologics deal as an example of this transition.

While RVF’s evergreen structure offers a degree of flexibility regarding holding periods, companies do not remain in the portfolio forever. Challenging IPO markets and stronger M&A appetite for more mature assets have prompted a rethink regarding commitment size. But Harmeier still expects RVF to stick to five-to-seven-year investment horizon.