The deep tech venture firm has surpassed its original goal by $50m and more than doubled its assets under management to $455m.
Imec.xpand, the venture capital fund aligned with research institute Imec, has closed its Fund II at €300m ($320m), exceeding its original target of €250m, although the new limited partners were not identified.
The firm began raising its second fund in 2021, when Fidimec, an investment fund of the Flemish government, invested $36.7m. Imec.xpand grew Fund II to $166m in 2022, when local newspaper De Tijd reported that “most” limited partners from Fund I had returned, without offering further details.
Imec.xpand focuses on technologies such as machine learning and artificial intelligence, photonics and augmented and virtual reality, as well as life sciences innovations such as advanced cell therapy, sequencing, diagnostics and neuromodulation.
Imec.xpand closed its first fund at $135m in 2018, with limited partners including Imec itself, as well as other, undisclosed universities, the Flemish government, state-owned regional development agency BOM and Belgian government-owned investment firm SFPI-FPIM.
Electronics manufacturers Samsung and Philips, semiconductor technology producers Applied Materials and SK Hynix, insurance firms KBC and Belfius, and BNP Paribas Fortis and KPN Ventures, subsidiaries of financial services firm BNP Paribas and telecoms company KPN, also invested in Fund I, as did unnamed high-net-worth individuals.
Imec.xpand has invested in 23 companies to date, which have raised a combined €1.5bn. Portfolio companies include previous GUV awardee PsiQuantum, a quantum computing technology developer co-founded by researchers from the University of Bristol.
Tom Vanhoutte, partner at Imec.xpand, said: “Imec.xpand is not just about funding startups, it’s about building companies that can lead the next wave of technological transformation.
“With this fund, we are dedicated to advancing the semiconductor industry by empowering startups to bring innovative technologies to market faster. The combination of our venture capital and international network helps unicorns grow amid the global race for semiconductor supremacy.”
Thierry Heles
Thierry Heles is editor-at-large of Global University Venturing and Global Corporate Venturing, and host of the Beyond the Breakthrough podcast.
