ARTICLE SUMMARY:
With a new, much larger fund to work with and a first exit under its belt, Paris-based incubator MD Start has validated its model, still rare in Europe, and is looking for new projects.
Established about a decade ago, Paris-based incubator/accelerator MD Start launched seven companies out of its first two funds. This past year, the company achieved two significant milestones: the first exit of one of its portfolio companies, preCARDIA, developers of a device to treat acute decompensated heart failure, to Abiomed for an undisclosed amount as well as the final close of a new fund of significantly greater size than its first two. These events raise the question: for an incubator like MD Start, which is a truer indication of success: the sale of its first portfolio company —a milestone for any incubator/accelerator— or the raise of a new, much larger fund?
