A new impact-driven life sciences investment firm has been launched to focus on therapies that address the needs of underserved communities.

Syridex Bio is funded by a team of established experts with decades of experience at the nexus of life sciences, entrepreneurship, and investing.

The launch reflects the urgent need for direct investment addressing health inequities in underserved communities and the largely untapped potential for robust financial returns in this often-overlooked space.

Launching in the context of the global coronavirus pandemic and the vast healthcare inequities, it revealed Syridex Bio’s investment focus is on funding therapies for diseases that disproportionately affect underserved populations, including ethnic minorities, the LGBTQ+ community, and rural dwellers.

The firm’s investment targets include in-development drugs and medical therapies that tackle the world’s greatest health outcome disparities. By leveraging venture creation and private equity strategies, Syridex aims to finance the development of medical solutions that improve health outcomes, reduce disparities in underserved communities, and advance health equity in absolute and relative terms.

Squire Servance, Founder and Managing Partner, has spent more than a decade working in the biotechnology, pharmaceutical, and life sciences industries. He commented on the launch: “Syridex Bio is founded on the fundamental belief that everyone deserves the opportunity to live a healthy life.

“Accelerating progress toward health equity requires unified action by a range of leaders and stakeholders, and it is increasingly clear that the investor community must play a central role. Driven by our focus on positive impact, we leverage a market-based approach to invest in therapies that intentionally serve the underserved – thus, laying the foundation for true equality in healthcare and opening the door to a brighter, healthier global future.”

The minority-led firm, guided by a world-class advisory board, draws on deep relationships across the global pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries to source investment opportunities in innovative, best-in-class clinical-stage or near-clinical-stage therapies.

The advisory board is led by:

• Kamil Ali-Jackson, is a serial entrepreneur, executive, board member, and legal counsel for emerging, mid-size, and large life sciences companies, who has also co-founded several speciality pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies.
• Owen May, is the Founder and CEO of May Davis Partners, an investment bank and advisory practice, who brings vast experience in corporate finance, IPOs, and business development.
• Anindya Roychowdhury, former Partner and Head of Deal Advisory at KPMG, is a demonstrated leader in starting profit centres and growing them into market leaders, with extensive startup and early-stage company experience.
• Veleka Peeples-Dyer, is an accomplished life sciences executive with a long track record of advising pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device, and other companies on FDA regulatory, legal, and global compliance matters as a strategic business and legal advisor.

Servance said: “Syridex Bio’s investment strategies intend to offer investors market-based pathways to address the most acute disparities across the healthcare system,” said advisory board member Kamil Ali-Jackson. “Investors who channel capital into such potentially transformative therapies will gain access to a compelling opportunity with competitive returns while also actively driving social justice in healthcare.”

Squire Servance has served as Senior Vice President, General before founding Syridex Counsel & Corporate Secretary at Repligen Corporation, a bioprocessing-focused life sciences company, where he led the legal, corporate secretary, compliance, and enterprise risk functions. He also counselled the company’s Board of Directors and senior management. Servance joined Repligen from Baxter International, Inc., where he led the global legal team supporting its multi-billion-dollar global pharmaceuticals business.