E649 | Mariette Roesink, Curie Capital: Backing Life Sciences, Unicorns & Zero Bankruptcies
Description
Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, your trusted inside track on the people, deals, and dynamics shaping European venture.
This week, Andreas Munk Holm is joined by Mariette Roesink, Co‑Founder of Curie Capital. Named after Marie Curie, the fund backs breakthrough life science technologies with a mission to both deliver outsized returns and transform patient outcomes.
Mariette and her co-founder Han de Groot have already been part of two unicorn exits, raised €200M across their portfolio in a single year, and — most strikingly — can point to zero bankruptcies across 25 investments. As family office-backed GPs, they also invest significant personal capital alongside LPs.
They dive into Curie’s approach, the unique dynamics of European biotech, why Western Europe is a life science powerhouse, and how to make life science VC anything but “binary.”
Whether you’re an LP curious about the sector, a GP sharpening your pitch, or a founder in healthtech — this conversation is packed with insights.
Here’s what’s covered:
01:00 | Why Curie Capital is named after Marie Curie
03:00 | High financial returns + patient impact: the dual promise of biotech
05:00 | Why GPs investing their own family money matters
07:00 | Raising €200M in “harsh” markets — portfolio highlights
09:30 | The billion-dollar impact story of Acerta Pharma
12:00 | Building specialist networks & engaging strategics early
14:00 | TargED Biotherapeutics: developing a breakthrough stroke therapy
17:00 | Zero bankruptcies — besides capital Curie helps the
young ventures with their network to support raising next rounds
and partnering
20:00 | The Curie Capital team — science, business, and hands-on support
21:30 | Why Western Europe is a life sciences powerhouse
23:30 | The 6.1x valuation gap between EU & US early-stage biotech
25:00 | The truth about life science holding periods & exits
27:00 | Educating LPs: why life science VC isn’t as binary as many think
United States
