Former Health Minister Lord Markham has been appointed as chair of HealthTech investor Spex Capital.
Spex, which invests at the early stage, has also announced the first €30 million commitment to its flagship €100m venture HealthTech Fund.
The fund will invest globally in early-stage HealthTech startups, from Seed to Series A/B, with investments of up to €5m.
Founded by serial entrepreneur Claudio D’Angelo, Spex Capital focuses on commercialising and scaling digital health and medical technology solutions across major healthcare delivery systems worldwide.
The fund’s unique access to innovation pipelines is amplified by strategic partnerships with EIT Digital, Europe’s largest innovation ecosystem co-funded by the EU, and Penn Medicine, one of the USA’s leading multi-hospital health systems serving over seven million patients annually.
Lord Markham has extensive experience across the public, private and voluntary sectors, particularly in the venture space where he co-founded a HealthTech business, Cignpost, which grew from €0 to €350m turnover in one year.
“I’m delighted to join Spex Capital at such a pivotal moment for HealthTech,” he said. “This scale-up fund will unleash groundbreaking startups.
“I look forward to working with Claudio and the team as we accelerate the development and adoption of technologies that improve patient outcomes and reshape healthcare delivery globally.”
D’Angelo added: “Healthcare faces immense challenges worldwide with ageing populations creating growing patient demand and systemic cost pressures.
“Our true strength is not just the volume of companies we see, but the unparalleled power of our distribution network to provide them with essential commercial and clinical validation.
“The supply is strong, but the validation we deliver through our network is the game-changer. Digital health tech is key to addressing these challenges, and with this fund, our new partnerships, and a world-class advisory network, we are uniquely positioned to support visionary founders delivering transformative solutions worldwide.”
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