KIKK Capital launches new investment fund

Following the success of its first two investment funds, KIKK Capital is launching a third fund: KIKK Capital II. The new fund targets Dutch startups and scale-ups developing a hardware product and those biotech companies developing platform technology that have achieved initial commercial successes.

Over the next few years, KIKK Capital II will invest €20 million in 10 to 15 enterprises. The fund has been made possible by 20 private investors and an investment from the RVO Seed Capital scheme. In addition to capital, the investors and fund management will make available their knowledge, expertise, and networks gained from prominent positions in the international business sphere to the invested companies.

Since the inception of the first fund, KIKK Capital has invested in 18 Dutch enterprises, including MIMETAS, Toxys, LIQAL, a DFS company, SystematIC Design B.V., and Tracefy.

KIKK Capital participates in 2.0 million seed extension round

KIKK Capital participates in an additional 2.0 million seed investment of River BioMedics to progress its cardiovascular disease pipeline

• New Investor Libertatis Ergo Holding joins the financing round alongside existing investors FIRST Fund, KIKK Capital and Oost NL

• €2 million funding to further progress its pipeline of cardiovascular disease targets, taking its total seed financing to €3.8 million

• Over €2 million in non-dilutive grant funding from EIC (European Innovation Council) to enable the further advancement of its technology

Enschede, The Netherlands, 05 July 2023 - River BioMedics, a cardiovascular drug discovery company using proprietary, cutting edge, 3D human cardiac models, today announced the closure of a €2 million financing round to progress its pipeline of novel genetically validated cardiovascular disease programs. Libertatis Ergo Holding, an independent subsidiary of Leiden University joins the investment syndicate alongside further investment from existing investors FIRST fund, managed by BioGeneration Ventures (BGV), KIKK Capital and Oost NL.

River BioMedics portfolio is focused on addressing the significant unmet need in cardiac disease, with an initial focus on Heart Failure. Its multi-faceted drug discovery approach aims to address the historical translation challenges in CVD – combining novel genetically validated cardiac targets and integrated in-vitro human cardiac models to enhance clinical predictability and address the underlying disease. The €2 million proceeds will be used to further progress compound development for its lead program focused on heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) and drive continued efforts on its earlier stage pipeline.

Heart failure affects 64 million people worldwide with around half of these individuals suffering from Heart Failure with preserved Ejection Fraction (HFpEF). There are few approved treatment options for HFpEF none of which address the underlying disease. This, alongside the conditions’ increasing prevalence make it an area of high unmet medical need.

Dr Nicky Cooper, Chief Executive Officer, River BioMedics, says: “I am delighted to close this funding round which reflects the confidence of our existing investors along with the commitment of Liberatis Ergo Holdings which we welcome greatly. This commitment further validates the efforts River BioMedics has made since the company was founded, and the exciting potential of the novel cardiac targets we are developing and our integrated in-vitro human cardiac models to maximise the pre-clinical to clinical efficacy translation of our portfolio. Moreover, it will allow our lead program to progress further towards lead selection, with the aim to address a significant unmet medical need in heart failure patients.”

Rob Mayfield, Managing Director, Libertatis Ergo Holding, says: “We are proud to be part of this shared mission addressing the unmet need in cardiac disease, together with the exceptional team at River and world class research”

About River BioMedics

River BioMedics, was founded in 2020 by Marcelo Ribeiro, Lisanne Blauw and Professor Robert Passier, as a spin-out from the University of Twente with research associated with LUMC. River is a cardiovascular drug discovery company focused on integrating in-house, cutting-edge bio-engineering technologies, with novel cardiac biology and drug discovery expertise to develop life-transforming medicines for cardiovascular disease. The company is building a portfolio of disease modifying small molecule drugs, against genetically validated, cardiac targets with an initial focus on heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), an area of high unmet medical need. The company’s 3D cardiac strip platform has applicability across all heart diseases and provides in-vitro human PoC early in the discovery process, aiming to enhance pre-clinical to clinical efficacy translation. With the current financing round, River BioMedics will further progress their lead program as a disease modifying approach to HFpEF. River has secured over €2M in grant funding to enable the further advancement of its technology. Including an EIC Transition grant to bring their hiPSC-3D cardiac strips into a high throughput setting and an EIC Pathfinder grant to fund the development of a pumping human Mini-heart (the latter as part of a consortium).  For more information: www.riverbiomedics.com

About the investors 

Libertatis Ergo Holding B.V. (LEH) is an active and lead seed-investor in life science and health, wholly owned subsidiary of Leiden University which supports and invests in companies related to Leiden University’s activities:https://libertatisergo.com/  

Fonds InvesteringsRijpe STarters (FIRST) is a pre-seed fund that finances pioneering scientists in The Netherlands active in the emerging fields of regenerative medicine and cardiovascular diseases. FIRST is founded by the Dutch Cardiovascular Alliance (DCVA) and Regenerative Medicine Crossing Borders (RegMed XB) with support of the Netherlands Enterprise Agency. BioGeneration Ventures (BGV) supports the FIRST fund as registered fund manager, making available its network, expertise, and facilities. For more information: https://biogenerationventures.com/en/about_us/first

Oost NL (East Netherlands Development Agency) is an agency that focuses its activities and projects on strengthening and stimulating the economy of the provinces of Gelderland and Overijssel, the Netherlands. With their investments, they support starting and growth-phase SMEs. They do this partly with risk capital from various revolving innovation funds, and partly through their knowledge, networks and personal contacts. Through the revolving funds, they provide for direct as well as indirect investment and take care of the fund management. In addition, they stimulate and support public and private investors. The result: growth through financing. For more information: www.oostnl.nl

KIKK Capital invests in young companies that have developed and recently launched a new product, process or service. The shareholders and fund management invest not only with capital, but also by providing knowledge, skills and network connections. All its shareholders have their own body of expertise gained from holding leading positions in national and international businesses. KIKK Capital remains actively involved in its participations and holds itself to shared responsibility for the success of every company. For more information: www.kikkcapital.com

For more information: https://www.riverbiomedics.com

Mystery shopping innovator Secret View raises 1.5M EUR Series A funding

Arnhem, 13 December 2022 - Secret View has raised 1.5 million Euros in a Series A funding round led by KIKK Capital, who are joined by Oost NL. This round allows Secret View to expand internationally and accelerate the development of its mystery shopping platform.

Secret View was founded in 2015 with a mission to revolutionize the mystery shopping market, which had lacked any real innovation for decades. Conventional mystery shopping agencies often report in outdated ways using licensed software, whereas Secret View has built an intuitive and comprehensive online dashboard, making it possible to continually optimize the software and provide clients with the best possible insights.

The mystery shopping community consists of regular consumers instead of professional mystery shoppers. These community members provide rich and detailed information based on genuine experiences. The community and platform are used by retail organizations worldwide to gather high-quality, real customer feedback. Insights from mystery shoppers enable these companies to optimize the customer journey, strengthen store operations, increase sales performance, and improve compliance. Secret View’s customers include Albert Heijn, Dyson, Pathé Cinemas, Rituals Cosmetics, and SPAR.

As a profitable company, Secret View will use the Series A funding to expand marketing and sales and accelerate product development aiming at optimizing operations and enhancing the value of research results. “In recent years, we have been able to build an exceptional product and build a large and active international community of mystery shoppers”, says Niek Koning, founder of Secret View. “Through our success building a 50,000+ mystery shopper community in over 30 countries, we have validated that our business model is incredibly scalable. The funding KIKK Capital and Oost NL bring will be used to take our solution to a larger and international audience.”

KIKK Capital consists of partners with strong roots in the international retail industry, a great match for Secret View. Johan Sebregts, Managing Partner at KIKK Capital: “The successful journey Secret View has had so far, along with their unique market position and ambitious team, proved decisive for us. The innovative platform and flexible community provide many opportunities for growth, and we look forward to helping the business flourish on a national and international level.”

Gijs Luesken, Investment Manager Tech at Oost NL: “Secret View is a great example of a tech startup in our region that recognized the opportunity to disrupt a conventional market. We’re proud to be able to support them in growing and further developing their product, which ultimately leads to a more pleasant environment for consumers.”

Niek adds, “We believe that the best way to effectively train employees, measure progress, and increase sales is through continuous learning from customer experiences in a positive learning environment. These insights are fundamental to building a strong and successful brand, particularly for large international organizations. We are excited to spread that message and our solution across the world.

About Secret View

Secret View (https://www.secretview.io) provides retail organizations with high-quality feedback based on real customer experiences. With an innovative online platform and over 50,000 mystery shoppers in 30 countries, Secret View’s mystery shopping research enables organizations and employees to embrace feedback and learn from customer insights in a user-friendly and positive way.

About KIKK Capital

KIKK Capital (https://www.kikkcapital.com) is an investment company that partners with start-up companies to build strong, successful, and sustainable businesses. KIKK Capital supports ambitious, determined, and motivated management teams by providing not only the funding necessary for businesses to grow, but also by actively supporting and assisting them in maximizing and leveraging growth opportunities.

About Oost NL

Oost NL (East Netherlands Development Agency, https://www.oostnl.nl) is an agency focusing helping local companies achieve sustainable growth, innovation, and internationalization. Oost NL acts as a bridge between government, companies and knowledge institute and supports starting and growth-phase SMEs with risk capital and knowledge, networks, and contacts.

KIKK Capital participates in 1.8 million seed investment round

KIKK Capital participates in 1.8 million seed investment for the discovery of two new drugs for heart failure 

River BioMedics, a drug discovery company using advanced 3D human cardiac models, today announced the closure of a 1.8 million Euro seed funding round to progress its research and innovation programs for cardiovascular disease targets and compounds. River BioMedics addresses the high unmet medical need of cardiac diseases, with a focus on heart failure. The financing round was co-led by FIRST fund, KIKK Capital and Oost NL. River BioMedics is part of the valorisation Springboard program of RegMed XB and DCVA that supports start-ups with dedicated mentors.

New treatment for heart failure

Heart failure affects 55 million people worldwide, with a healthcare cost of more than €30 billion per year in Europe alone. Many of the current available medicines merely treat the symptoms of disease rather than targeting the underlying cause. Although in recent years there has been an attempt to find drugs that target the underlying biological mechanisms of the disease this has been hampered by the lack of good human predictive models for use in target validation and drug discovery. River BioMedics believes their human-predictive in vitro 3D heart models will address this issue. With the current financing round, River BioMedics will start 2 drug discovery programs on cardiac specific targets. 

About River BioMedics

River BioMedics was founded in 2020 as a spin-out from the University of Twente’s department of Applied Stem Cell Technologies. The team has built a suite of 3D cardiac models including, 3D cardiac strips, heart-on-a-chip and the highly innovative mini heart, to support their drug discovery programs and enable partnerships. The company will be based in Enschede, The Netherlands and operate out of its offices at the campus of the University of Twente (Enschede). 

About the funders 

KIKK Capital invests in young companies that have developed and recently launched a new product, process or service. 

Fonds InvesteringsRijpe STarters (FIRST), managed by BioGeneration Ventures (BGV), is a pre-seed fund that finances pioneering scientists in The Netherlands active in the emerging fields of regenerative medicine and cardiovascular diseases. 

Oost NL (East Netherlands Development Agency) is an agency that focuses its activities and projects on strengthening and stimulating the economy of the provinces of Gelderland and Overijssel, the Netherlands. 

For more information: https://www.riverbiomedics.com

KIKK Capital exits LIQAL

LIQAL acquired by Dover Fueling Solutions. 

KIKK Capital is proud to announce that its portfolio company LIQAL is acquired by Dover Fueling Solutions, part of Dover Corporation, the market leader in the fueling industry in Europe.

Founded in 2014, LIQAL’s vision is to make greener and cleaner alternative fuel options accessible throughout the transport sector. LIQAL specialized in small-scale LNG and hydrogen technologies. Using its experience in the gas-based alternative fuel market, LIQAL developed strong innovative capabilities and a high-end, complementary portfolio of products, solutions and services, including remote operations that enables customers to use products without needing to build-up their own expertise.

In 2017, participation by KIKK Capital and BOM has enabled LIQAL’s international growth. LIQAL’s next step comes as the transportation fuel industry is rapidly changing. By joining forces with market leader DFS, it will be possible to accelerate with an impactful contribution to the decarbonisation of the transport sector.

KIKK Capital wishes Jorg and his team all the best with realizing their ambitions.

Our new E-book 'DREAM IT. ACHIEVE IT'.

Innovative entrepreneurship is fun, but it is also challenging. As investment managers of KIKK Capital, we have noticed that innovative entrepreneurs are facing very similar issues. We asked them to share their experiences.

We have bundled over 150 tips and lessons from the entrepreneurs of KIKK Capital and from us in a free E-book. We are convinced that other innovative entrepreneurs can learn from them and thereby avoid falling into the well-known pitfalls many starting entrepreneurs face. We are proud to present this e-book today to you. You can download it here!

Animal-free chemical safety testing with new technology ToxProfiler

Animal-free chemical safety testing with new technology ToxProfiler

Toxys, Leiden University and Leiden University Medical Center have agreed immediately to commercialise and also develop further the ToxProfiler technology invented at the two institutions. ToxProfiler allows for rapid toxicity hazard identification of novel and existing drugs, chemicals, and other substances. Furthermore, ToxProfiler has the unique ability to provide detailed and quantitative information about the mode-of-action of such toxic substances. Furthermore, the technique is also free of animal-testing.

Expanding the portfolio

This new technology thereby enormously enlarges the portfolio of toxicity testing that Toxys can make available to the world, complementing the existing genotoxicity and repro-toxicity testing platforms of Toxys.

‘Toxys is continuously looking for opportunities to expand its portfolio of unique animal-free assays for chemical safety testing’, says Giel Hendrik, CEO of Toxys. ‘The ToxProfiler technology aligns perfectly with our already robust portfolio of toxicology services. We are very excited to bring ToxProfiler to our clients and further support the non-animal safety testing of novel medicines, chemicals and other products.’

Safety testing

The technology on which the ToxProfiler platform is based, was developed by the Leiden Academic Centre of Drug Research (LACDR). The ToxProfiler platform consists of a large collection of fluorescent reporter cell lines in combination with automated live-cell imaging and data analysis pipelines. ToxProfiler is particularly applicable for early chemical safety testing as well as read-across, adverse outcome pathway and weight-of-evidence approaches.

Bob van de Water, professor of Drug Safety Sciences at LACDR is extremely pleased to see that the is now ready to be commercialised by industry. ‘The technology was initially developed at LACDR and further validated within the Horizon2020 EUToxRisk program. It contributes to the paradigm shift in mechanism-based human safety evaluation and supports the development of safer and more effective medicines and other products. We are very much looking forward to working with Toxys.’

‘We are proud to work with Toxys to bring our technology to the market’ agrees Hubertus Irth, scientific director of the LACDR. ‘With the scientific expertise and proven experience with bringing innovative cell assays to the market, we believe that Toxys is the ideal partner to further develop and commercialise our ToxProfiler technology. Valorisation and contributing to solving important societal problems like reducing animal testing is a key priority for our university.’

Human health hazards

The ToxProfiler platform is a unique New Approach Method, that can be applied to accurately quantify the chemical-induced cellular stress response pathways to reveal the toxicological mode-of-action of novel medicines, (agro)chemicals, cosmetics and food ingredients. Differentiation of the ToxProfiler reporter cells in 3D spheroids can be applied to study liver metabolisation or bioaccumulation and long-term exposure effects by repeated dosing of compounds. Understanding these often complex mechanisms underlying toxicity is essential for extrapolation of in vitro test results to human health hazards.

More information about the ToxProfiler technology can be found on the Toxys website.

About Toxys

Toxys is a Dutch biotech company that offers a broad spectrum of innovative in vitro toxicology solutions. Toxys was founded in 2014 as a spin-off from the Leiden University Medical Center and has its state-of-the-art laboratory facilities located at the Leiden Bio Science Park. Toxys is expert in toxicological research with a mission to improve animal-free safety testing by creating mechanistic in vitro chemical safety tests to meet the needs for safer medicines, chemicals and cosmetics. 

Toxys is dedicated to bringing relevant information to our clients on potential human health hazards of novel and existing drugs, chemicals and other substances. Toxys is currently working with seven of the Top ten global Pharma companies and several major chemical, cosmetics and food multinationals. Toxys is highly valued for its scientific expertise, high-quality results and responsiveness.

Pepscope Secures €4.3 million Investment to Develop and Commercialize QuantaKinome

Pepscope Secures €4.3 million Investment to Develop and Commercialize QuantaKinome

Pepscope has secured a 4.3-million-euro funding round, led by KIKK Capital, together with Oost NL and the Netherlands Enterprise Agency to further develop and commercialize her lead product QuantaKinome™.

QuantaKinome™ is the first technology to provide direct insights into the activities of hundreds of protein kinases simultaneously inside the cells of diseased tissues. Pepscope offers QuantaKinome™ to the pharmaceutical industry and academic researchers to improve the discovery and development of novel kinase inhibitors and other therapeutic compounds, to find new applications of existing compounds, and in due course to select optimal therapies for individual patients.

Kinase inhibitors represent an essential class of targeted therapies that exert their effects by influencing signaling networks inside cells, governed by protein kinases. Despite impressive scientific progress, little is known about the complex effects of drugs on these networks inside tissues. QuantaKinome™ is perfectly positioned to fill this gap.

Anna Ressa, CEO & co-founder of Pepscope, comments: “With this investment, we are fully equipped to expand our business globally and work on novel solutions for drug development with pharmaceutical partners. I am very proud of the strong and dedicated Pepscope team that brings QuantaKinome™ to the market.”

“Pepscope solves a crucial problem with an enormous, untapped market potential”, says Johan Sebregts, Managing Partner of lead investor KIKK Capital, “We are proud to join Pepscope together with our partners and bring our combined financial and business resources to the table to help the company grow.”

"Pepscope has a promising solution for improving drug development, leading to personalized treatment plans and more effective care," says Thomas Hensel, Investment Manager at Oost NL. Oost NL provides a loan to Pepscope from the new fund ION+.

“We’re delighted that we can finally offer a solution for the lack of insight in kinase activities in cells and tissues”, adds Jos Joore, co-founder of Pepscope, “QuantaKinome™ is bound to transform kinase inhibitors and other therapies. We can’t wait to start making an impact on patient lives.”

For more information: www.pepscope.com

NEW INVESTMENT MANAGER: FATIH KAYA

New investment manager: Fatih Kaya

We want to let you know that Patrick Lems is going to leave us on the 1st of July. He will become CFO at Hygeniq, one of our portfolio companies. We wish him good luck with this great role at this promising organisation. 

We would like to introduce our new Investment manager Fatih Kaya to you. 

Fatih Kaya: "As an investment manager I want to be the best possible ally entrepreneurs can think of. An ally that is constantly challenging them as we work together on improving our thinking, discovering new ideas, and sharing them in a collaborative and supportive environment."

Background

Fatih holds a BSc in Business Administration from Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University, an MSc in Finance & Investments from the same faculty, and an LLM in Financial Law from Erasmus School of Law. He also studied at the Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance as part of an exchange programme. The initial years of his career have revolved around advisory through his capacity first as an intern at ABN AMRO Corporate Finance, Oxeye Advisors, and subsequently as an M&A analyst at Deloitte Corporate Finance. Fatih: "During this period of time, I had the pleasure to experience a variety of corporate transactions, where I was actively involved with all deal aspects from origination till closing."

Strenght

Fatih: "My past experiences in M&A formed a solid base for future professional endeavours. I enjoyed applying holistic thinking and not only did I gain firm technical and financial skills, I was also exposed to (inter)national clients operating in a wide variety of industries for which it was imperative to quickly comprehend value chains and business strategies. I am comfortable with numbers, figures and using data to make decisions in a competitive environment, while interacting with a wide variety of stakeholders."

Objective

Fatih: "The very essence of Venture Capital to me is helping entrepreneurs thrive. Rather than accepting barriers, you circumvent or surpass them together. She or he faces a certain challenge and we are there to help overcome them in order for him or her to achieve their goals. The entrepreneurs we support are creating companies that are working on new and exciting technologies and innovations for the future growth and benefit of our society. My primary objective is to add maximum value to the journey of our entrepreneurs by working together on solving problems that are relevant to the global marketplace and seizing opportunities when they arise."

Passion

Fatih: "The rush I get from discovering new things is a great activator for me. Whether in literature, technology, productivity tools, valuable apps or amazing restaurants; I am always on the lookout for that next best thing to make my life and everyone else's around me more joyful, entertaining and effective."

Contact information:

M: f.kaya@kikkcapital.com
T: +31 (0)6 249 40 263

KIKK Capital invests in Tracefy

KIKK Capital invests in Tracefy, a system that allows companies to manage their fleet of small electric vehicles more efficiently and partly automated.

KIKK Capital and Chris Koppert, (former owner of BBB cycling) jointly invested one million euro in Tracefy. With this growth capital, Tracefy has the opportunity to develop a market leader position for GPS fleet management systems in Europe.

The Tracefy system consists of an online dashboard with which companies are able to manage their fleets of small electric vehicles more efficiently and partly automated. The dashboard offers full insights on all locations and trip data of all (via GPS tracker) linked vehicles. At any given time a day usage of the fleet e-bikes, scooters, kickscooters, and cars can be monitored. It's a treasury of realtime data. The main advantage: companies can reduce cost. No more premature maintenance based on assumptions but based on actual usage. This also makes billing a lot more accurate and easier. For delivery services, realtime location data is an excellent way to keep customers informed on the whereabouts of their order. It is a solid and yet flexible system because it is suitable for any kind of vehicle and can be used in small and large fleets.

With this investment, Tracefy will be able to expand its markets for their unique and easy to use solution for fleet management of small (electric) vehicles to the European markets like Germany and France. In addition, technical capacity is increased for further development of the software, adding new features and to offer customized solutions.

Niels Penning, Technical Director: “We are proud to be given the opportunity for this next step. Our solution fits in a broader social development in which small vehicles are a full-fledged alternative for delivery services, bike sharing and commuting. Especially now, in a time where social distancing is important, we see significant growth in the need for (temporary) delivery vehicles. And with that a growing demand for efficient fleet management. We are happy to go the extra mile to help the fleets of all customers - big or small - get connected as soon as possible.

Johan Sebregts, investmentmanager KIKK Capital: “More and more companies are specialised in sales and maintenance of vehicles for, amongst others, delivery services. Managing these vehicles is quite a challenge. We are convinced that the Tracefy team has developed and launched a very distinguishable solution. By investing and offering our experience, Tracefy can expand its international position."

For more information: click here of visit www.tracefy.com