Pitch Best PE Venture Capital 2019 – Life Sciences: EyeD

Category:                   Best PE Venture Capital Deal – Life Sciences 2019
Name of the deal:     EyeD raises €28 million in investment round. 
Date closed:              22nd of May 2019
Published value:       €28 million
Buyer:                        Désiré Collen, Gilles Samyn, Denis Knoops, Fund+, Qbic and the Walloon government.
Target:                       EyeD
Seller:                        None    
M&A Database:        https://mena.nl/deal/11662

Visit MA-Awards.be for more information and availability of dinner tables or tickets. 

Pitch

Brief description deal / Deal outline:
EyeD raises € 28 million from a syndicate of investors.

Deal rationale:
EyeD has received 28 million euros to continue its research and to test human eye implants. € 8 million comes from investors, € 20 million from bank loans and support from the Walloon government.

What is the impact of this deal for the company?
EyeD has developed an implant with which it initially wants to treat glaucoma. In this chronic disease, the channels narrow to remove eye fluid, which causes pressure in the eye and causes the optic nerves to die. Little by little, this causes irreversible loss of vision and ultimately leads to blindness.

With the money, EyeD can continue its research and test implants against human eye diseases. EyeD has already proven the usefulness of its technology in tests with rabbits, and will test it on about 40 people for the first time in 2020. EyeD, which is also a distributor of instruments and equipment for eye surgeons, will also use the money to start their own production and to expand the workforce (now 30 employees).

What is the impact of this deal on the society?
In Europe and the US, around 20 million people suffer from glaucoma. A solution is therefore highly desirable.

Why does this deal deserve a nomination?
A prize would underline the potential of EyeD's technology.

Comments Panel of Judges
Biotech promise EyeD has, in the opinion of the jury, attracted a valuable combination of investors. The involvement of bio-tech entrepreneurs in particular appeals to the jury's imagination. In addition, the product appeals; an implant that can potentially alleviate the lives of 20 million people with glaucoma.