Synergy Life Science Partners Closes $143M Debut Medical Device Fund

PORTOLA VALLEY, Calif., Jan. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Synergy Life Science
Partners, LP, a venture capital limited partnership focused on investments in
emerging medical device technologies, today announced the successful
completion of fundraising for its debut fund with an aggregate of $143 million
in committed capital. The firm has closed on six investments to date.
Founded in 2006 by John Onopchenko, Richard Stack, M.D., and William
Starling, Synergy invests directly in private, early-stage medical device
firms or emerging companies that are developing disruptive technologies to
address unmet or under-served human healthcare needs. Areas of therapeutic
interest include cardiovascular disease, orthopedic and spinal diseases and
injuries, metabolic disorders such as diabetes and obesity, neuro-mediated
disorders, oncology and ophthalmic conditions.
"We're excited about our fundraising accomplishments and our early
portfolio," said Onopchenko, a managing director of Synergy. "We've received a
great deal of support from our new limited partners, who share our vision for
building and accelerating the delivery of innovative medical products. Our
goal is to help dramatically improve the standard of patient care in our
therapeutic categories, while generating exceptional returns to the customers
of and investors in our portfolio companies."
For Synergy's limited partners, the decision to participate has been based
on a unique set of factors. "Synergy's innovative strategy for medical device
investing is an ideal fit for our portfolio," said Tracy Harris, Director for
Parish Capital Advisors, LLP. "We believe the unmatched industry expertise of
the managing directors and the fund's strategy of targeting early-stage
companies in large therapeutic areas position Synergy to offer outsized
returns for investors."
Synergy intends to invest in early-stage companies in large therapeutic
areas in both the medical device and the combination product sector. Synergy
seeks companies with productive, domain-experienced leadership teams.
Additionally, Synergy has the right to invest in companies initiated by
Synecor, LLC, a medical device incubator co-founded by Stack and Starling.
Over the last 25 years, Synergy's three principals have established
themselves as successful, highly respected venture capital investors,
inventors, entrepreneurs, and senior leaders in the healthcare industry.
Onopchenko has spent his entire 25-year career in the medical device
field, including senior management positions at General Electric and Johnson &
Johnson. Most recently, he was the lead medical device investor for Johnson &
Johnson Development Corporation, one of the largest corporate venture
investors in the healthcare industry. Companies he has invested in and served
as a director of include Volcano, Epicor, NuVasive, Vascular Control Systems,
and Vivant Medical.
In addition to co-founding Synecor, Stack is a prolific educator,
researcher, and inventor with 28 years experience as an international medical
device thought leader. Formerly the head of interventional cardiology at Duke
University Medical Center, he has authored 360 manuscripts, book chapters, and
abstracts, been a principal or co-principal investigator for three National
Institutes of Health grants, and received multiple research awards, including
the International Award for Best Experimental Researcher in 1995 from
Thoraxcenter, the Netherlands. He currently holds 70 worldwide patents and
patents pending for a variety of vascular and therapeutic devices, many of
which have been adopted worldwide.
Starling, also a Synecor co-founder, has spent 30 years in the medical
device industry. He was a founding management team member for Advanced
Cardiovascular Systems, Inc. (acquired by Lilly/Guidant/Abbott), and was a
co-founder, officer, and board member of Ventritex, Inc. (IPO in 1992,
acquired by St. Jude Medical in 1997). In 1992, he was cofounder, chairman,
and president and chief executive officer of Cardiac Pathways Corporation (IPO
in 1996, acquired by Boston Scientific Corporation in 2001). Starling has been
primarily responsible for raising more than $300 million in private and public
capital for the companies that he has co-founded, which have combined annual
revenues exceeding $2.75 billion.
About Synergy Life Science Partners
Founded in 2006 by John Onopchenko, Richard Stack, M.D., and William
Starling, Synergy Life Science Partners, LP, is a venture capital fund based
in Portola Valley, CA that invests directly in private, early-stage medical
device firms or emerging companies that are developing breakthrough,
disruptive technologies to address unmet or underserved human healthcare
needs. For more information, call 650-854-9171 or visit
http://www.synergylsp.com.
Information Contact:
Tracy Pappas, Chief Financial Officer
Synergy Life Science Partners
650-854-9171
tpappas@synergylsp.com

SOURCE Synergy Life Science Partners, LP

Tracy Pappas, Chief Financial Officer of Synergy Life Science Partners,
+1-650-854-9171, tpappas@synergylsp.com