Venture Capital,
by Omnes Capital

Helping innovative, up-and-coming start-ups to create the leaders of tomorrow

Investment strategy

  • Establish minority shareholdings in innovative up-and-coming businesses with tremendous growth potential
  • In France and the rest of Europe
  • Two target sectors: tech and health sectors
    digital (advanced software, marketplace/e-commerce, media), deep-tech (high-end sensors and semi-conductors, big data, new materials) and life sciences (biotech, medtech, diagnostics)
  • Different investment stages: seed funds, Series A rounds, spin-offs, Series B rounds

Approach

  • Support for international expansion (US, APAC, EMEA)
  • Acquisition financing
  • Implementation of strategic and financial best practices
  • IPOs (New York, Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, Milan, Stockholm, Zurich) and cross-border M&As (US, Europe, Japan, South Korea)

Key strengths

  • Over 85 man-years of venture capital experience
  • Unique expertise spanning Life Sciences/web/hardware
  • Substantial high-quality deal flow driven by the team’s personal network and close relationship with the Crédit Agricole group (LCL in particular)
  • Balanced portfolio: diversification of risk, high-potential technology sectors
Key figures
€700
million in assets under management
120
companies supported over 20 years
30+
exits of which over 10 via IPOs
Business Case
“Within ten years, we can become the world leader in the market.”
BERNARD
GILLY
Executive Chairman
of Pixium Vision
> Read more
Pixium Vision
ProjectCompanyINTERVIEWKey dates

A long-term view

In June 2014, Omnes Capital supported the initial public offering made by Pixium Vision, a start-up specialising in vision restoration systems (VRSs). The IPO was highly successful, as one would expect for a company at the leading edge of research into visual impairment. A month later, Bernard Gilly, head of Pixium Vision, confirmed its success, with a total of €39.5 million ultimately raised.
BERNARD GILLY
Executive Chairman of Pixium Vision

Disruptive innovation

Alexia Perouse (Partner at Omnes Capital) and Bernard Gilly first discussed vision restoration systems in the early 2000s. "VRSs aim to enable blind people to perceive shapes and movements, a really tremendous project. But their design came up against two hurdles, systems miniaturisation and real-time image transmission", explains Bernard Gilly. 

 

Pixium overcame these hurdles in 2011 when it launched IRIS (short for Intelligent Retinal Implant System), consisting of a pair of glasses with an integrated mini-camera linked to a pocket computer and a retinal implant that stimulates the brain cells. 

 

"It met all our criteria for investment: disruptive technology, a seasoned management team and a promising medtech sector", says Alexia Perouse. So in 2012, Omnes Capital invested €5 million.

BERNARD
GILLY
Executive Chairman
of Pixium Vision
What sets Pixium apart from its competitors?
Our technology. We are pioneers in VRSs working as artificial retinas. IRIS, our first implant, has between 50 and 150 electrodes and can be implanted under general anaesthetic in two hours. PRIMA, the next generation, will have more than one thousand wireless electrodes and will be implanted under local anaesthetic in just 30 minutes. Both are being developed by an international network of research scientists from the Vision Institute, Université Pierre-et- Marie-Curie and the universities of Stanford and Jerusalem.
What do you expect from your partnership with Omnes Capital?
Omnes Capital has always been a partner that assesses our decisions, our strategy and our new hires, such as Pierre Kemula (former head of Investor Relations at Ipsen) who joined us as CFO last June. Alexia Perouse and her team know our project intimately, as they do the biotechnology and medical devices markets in general. We are united by strong mutual trust, which also stems from our long-standing relationship with Alexia, whom I have known since 2000.
What are your ambitions for the next few years?
The market is structuring itself. Within ten years, we can become a world leader with IRIS and PRIMA, but also with our R&D work on optical nerve pathologies, such as glaucoma. Will this growth be achieved alone or as part of a major group following a buyout? Only time will tell.

Timeline

• 2011: Bernard Gilly founds Pixium Vision with a group of scientists working at the Vision Institute and Université Pierre-et-Marie-Curie
• 2012: The first funding round organised with Omnes Capital raises €23.5 million
• 2013: Clinical trials begin on IRIS
• 2014: The IPO raises €39.5 million
• 2015: Development of IRIS begins in the United-States
pixium-vision
“Omnes Capital placed its trust in us and was patient.”
GILDAS
SORIN
Chief Executive Officer
of Novaled AG
> Read more
Novaled AG
ProjectCompanyINTERVIEW

Good things come to those who wait…

Time has proved Omnes Capital right, as it saw Novaled AG’s potential very early on.

In 2005, Omnes acquired an interest in its capital as lead investor for €4 million as part of a €15 million funding round, before injecting another €1.5 million in 2008. This bet paid off handsomely. Since 2009, materials developed by Novaled AG have been used in displays for the Samsung Galaxy, one of the world’s top-selling smartphones.

The German start-up, which was acquired by the Samsung group during the summer 2013, has pioneered OLED technology, which will revolutionise the world of displays and lighting.
SORIN GILDAS
Chief Executive Officer of Novaled AG

Grow up with Samsung

OLED diodes illuminate surfaces using thin layers of organic composite semiconductors. Unlike LCDs, they do not need backlighting, which also reduces their power consumption.

 

The integration of flexible materials such as plastics has opened the way for the development of thin and flexible displays and lighting solutions. Provided that the plastics used could be made better conductors.

 

And that is exactly what the innovation and technology developed by Novaled do.
They enhance the organic material, extending its life and reducing its power consumption.
GILDAS
SORIN
Chief Executive Officer
of Novaled AG
Novaled AG has demonstrated that technology ventures can be a success in Europe...
Definitely. If you have the right products and if you adopt a good quality strategy, you have every chance of success! Novaled AG is a prime example of this. A giant like Samsung chose us as a supplier because we had products that matched its needs. Despite tough negotiations, it immediately showed its confidence in Novaled. Samsung agreed that we should be its only supplier of certain materials used in Galaxy smartphones. This represents a tremendous vote of confidence given its production imperatives.
Why did you choose Omnes Capital as a partner?
Right from the start, we felt that we were on the same page as Omnes Capital. Its teams had confidence in our management and showed a great deal of patience. At the time, there was no certainty that we would become what we are today. They played a full part on our Supervisory Board, respecting our management team and its responsibilities, without ever getting in its way. They have always been there for us when we needed them – both in good times and in more difficult ones.
What challenges lie ahead for you?
With the OLED market expected to consolidate, it is crucial to build partnerships with materials manufacturers. The acquisition by Cheil Industries represents a step in this direction and will give us the benefit of the group’s investments in the next generation of materials. We look at the future with real optimism, especially since OLED TVs are currently arriving on the market. That should provide a boost to our growth.
novaled-ag
« Omnes provides us with its network and helps us to confirm our market credibility »
THIERRY
ROUSSEL
co-founder
of SeniorAdom
> Read more
SeniorAdom
New-generation telecareA TELECARE REVOLUTIONSTRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS3 questions for...

SeniorAdom sets out to conquer the telecare market.

Determined to revolutionise the sector through innovative technology, the start-up has been supported by Omnes Capital and four other reputed investors since 2015

key figures

  • Over 1.5 million seniors or disabled people live at home alone and want to remain autonomous.
  • 47% of seniors take a fall at least once a year, and half of them cannot get back on their feet by themselves.
  • Only 6% of French people over 80 were equipped with smart telecare devices in 2010.
  • Nearly 1,000 people are already equipped with SeniorAdom technology just a few months after commercial launch.
A TELECARE REVOLUTION

The solutions available until now required them to wear a "smart" necklace, watch or bracelet to alert the emergency services in the event of a fall. But these devices are rarely used because they come with a certain stigma and are seen as ineffective in cases of loss of consciousness. In response, SeniorAdom has developed an innovative technology able to automatically detect abnormal situations.


The concept consists of a box connected to sensors that detect the movements of the individual at home and serve to model their habitual everyday movements. In the event of an anomaly, an alarm is sent to the caregivers and then to a call platform, which calls out the emergency services where necessary. « Since its launch in 2012, SeniorAdom has successfully demonstrated the effectiveness of its technology as well as the strong acceptability of the product from both a financial and an everyday use standpoint, » says François-Xavier Dedde, Principal at Omnes Capital. All of which convinced Omnes Capital to invest in the start-up in 2015, with a view to helping it step up the roll-out of its product and extend its distribution platforms. « Acquiring a share in SeniorAdom fits in perfectly with our investment strategy on smart healthcare, » says François-Xavier Dedde. « SeniorAdom brings together all the key success factors: market opportunity, robust technology and a profile of outstanding entrepreneurs »

STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS
After admitting Business Angels and Kima Ventures into its capital in mid-2014, the founders initiated a new fundraising in summer 2015, attracting three new investors alongside Omnes Capital : 123Venture, SEB Alliance and AG2R LA MONDIALE. « After leading the financing round, we are supporting the company through regular dialogue with its managers. Our aim is to help them call themselves into question, prioritise, and to offer the benefit of our operational expertise,» says François-Xavier Dedde. The company continues to grow and hopes to expand internationally in the near future.
3 questions for THIERRY ROUSSEL
Thierry
ROUSSEL
co-founder
of SeniorAdom
Why the fundraising in 2015?
After winning a contract with the City of Paris in 2013, SeniorAdom was able to test its solution with vulnerable individuals through the financial support of Business Angels, including Xavier Niel via Kima. A year later, we finally received approval from France’s old-age insurance fund, CNAV. The time had come for us to join forces with investors to initiate the project’s roll-out phase. The investors included financial partners such as 123Venture and Omnes, which I had the pleasure of working with during Direct Energie’s second financing round in 2004, together with manufacturers such as SEB Alliance, which is interested in our technology (the box is a real hub), and AG2R LA MONDIALE, the leader in social protection in France.
What did Omnes Capital contribute to you and your company?
Their contribution was invaluable on several levels. Omnes immediately took charge of the financing round, lending it impetus and challenging our business model. We also benefited from their network, met with robust players, and confirmed our credibility in the market. In addition, we appreciate the quality of the human relations we have with our contacts and their sound understanding of our business.
What are your objectives now?
We have given ourselves a few months to conclude our tests of the various distribution platforms. We recently formed a partnership with Europ Assistance. We need a little more time to gain the necessary perspective and finalise our strategy. We will then organise a new fundraising to initiate international roll-out by harnessing the most relevant platforms.
senioradom
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