EC-V targets mid-market companies in Europe and North America, deploying equity investments between '200m and '350m across tech-enabled business services, financial services, and healthcare and life sciences. Nearly half of the fund has already been allocated to six investments, including Spanish back-of-house software provider Mapal, French advisory firm Eres, UK and US-based specialty insurance broker BMS, global plagiocephaly treatment leader Cranial Technologies, French veterinary clinic group Sevetys, and business agility solutions provider Scaled Agile. The fund builds on the success of Eurazeo Capital IV (EC-IV) and reinforces Eurazeo's position as a leading mid-market investor. With a team of nearly 30 investment professionals based in Paris, London, Milan, and New York, Eurazeo secured commitments from a diverse group of global investors, including insurance companies, sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, banks, and family offices. Subscribe to our Newsletter to increase your edge. Don't worry about the news anymore, through our newsletter you'll receive weekly access to what is happening. Join 120,000 other PE professionals today....

Researchers from the Disruptive and Sustainable Technologies for Agricultural Precision (DiSTAP) interdisciplinary research group of the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART), MIT's research enterprise in Singapore, in collaboration with Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory (TLL) and MIT, have developed a groundbreaking near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent nanosensor capable of simultaneously detecting and differentiating between iron forms ' Fe(II) and Fe(III) ' in living plants. Iron is crucial for plant health, supporting photosynthesis, respiration, and enzyme function. It primarily exists in two forms: Fe(II), which is readily available for plants to absorb and use, and Fe(III), which must first be converted into Fe(II) before plants can utilize it effectively. Traditional methods only measure total iron, missing the distinction between these forms ' a key factor in plant nutrition. Distinguishing between Fe(II) and Fe(III) provides insights into iron uptake efficiency, helps diagnose deficiencies or toxicities, and enables precise fertilization strategies in agriculture, reducing waste and environmental impact while improving crop productivity....

This move follows Bain Capital's $3.3bn acquisition of Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma last month, highlighting private equity's growing focus on Japan's healthcare market. Recent reforms aim to cut Japan's 'drug lag''the delay in making new medicines available'making pharmaceutical investments more attractive. Atsuhiko Sakamoto, Blackstone's head of Japan private equity, noted that Japan's clinical trial process has been slow but is now improving. He emphasised Blackstone's role in accelerating drug development and approvals, particularly as demand rises with an ageing population. Through its Life Sciences fund, Blackstone has invested in late-stage drug development. Owning CMIC will help the firm bring new treatments to Japan more quickly. In March 2023, 143 new drugs approved in the US and Europe were still unavailable in Japan, with over half not even applying for approval, according to the health ministry. Blackstone plans to expand CMIC through further acquisitions in Japan's pharmaceutical services sector, with an initial public offering targeted within five years. Last year, it took Japanese pharmaceutical services firm I'rom private but intends to keep it separate from CMIC....

It's often said that the UK and Europe lack the huge level of growth funding for later-stage startups that the US has for its own, and this is correct. According to the European Investment Fund, there are at least seven times more large-size VC funds in the US than in Europe. So the appearance of a new growth fund in the UK is significant. Cambridge Innovation Capital (CIC), which invests exclusively in the Cambridge ecosystem in and around the famous university, has launched a new '100 million ($126 million) 'Opportunity Fund', essentially a growth fund. CIC has $757 million invested in over 40 companies and has a privileged relationship with the University of Cambridge. Two investments have already been made. Pragmatic Semiconductor is a large chip designer and manufacturer which has raised $389.3 million to date, while Riverlane, is a quantum computing error correction company that has raised $120.7 million. The new CIC fund will invest up to '20 million ($25.2 million) per investment into the later-stage funding rounds of deep tech and life sciences companies. The hope, of course, is to address the UK's long-standing funding gap issue for later-stage startups, which tends to lead to a drain of those companies towards other countries, usually the US....