Hogan Lovells Cadwalader advises BCM Legacy Fund in the design and formation of its fund to invest philanthropic capital in biomedical startups

The BCM Legacy Fund intends to make catalytic investments in biomedical startups at the earliest stage of the journey where promising science is abundant, but capital is scarce. The Legacy Fund has made its first investment in Nemea Therapeutics, a Houston company built on research from Baylor and the Lead Discovery Center in Dortmund, Germany, that is developing an oral drug for individuals with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer that no longer responds to current therapies.

The BCM Legacy Fund introduces a new form of capital at the earliest stage of that relay, where it has historically been scarcest. It aggregates philanthropic capital from private foundations and donor-advised funds and invests it in startups to carry a company to the point where industry and later-stage investors will take it the rest of the way to patients.

“It was a privilege to advise BCM Legacy Fund on the creation of an innovative investment model designed to help promising life sciences discoveries,” said partner Barry Burgdorf. “Bringing together philanthropic capital, scientific innovation, and an investment structure built around early-stage opportunities, required thoughtful collaboration across a number of disciplines. We are proud to have supported the Legacy Fund team as it brought this vision to life.”