Star Metro - Lumira Ventures Announces First Closing of Fifth Fund to Back High-Impact Healthcare Innovation Across North America

TORONTO, ON, MONTRÉAL, QC AND BOSTON, MA / ACCESS Newswire / April 20, 2026 / Lumira Ventures today announced the first closing of Lumira Ventures V, LP ("Fund V"), its latest healthcare venture capital fund dedicated to building transformative biotechnology and medical technology companies across North America. Together with three strategic funds managed by the firm, this closing represents the seventh investment fund established by Lumira. With a target final size of US$200 million (C$275 million), Fund V has already completed its first investment, a US$52 million Series B financing for a pre-commercial-stage medical device company.

Over its multi-decade history, Lumira-backed companies have delivered more than 25 exits through IPOs and strategic acquisitions and achieved over 40 regulatory approvals. Innovations developed by these companies have touched the lives of more than 15 million patients globally and generated more than US$100 billion in cumulative revenue. Since 2024, Lumira has successfully exited 7 portfolio companies at a cumulative transaction value exceeding US$8 billion, while its companies have collectively raised more than US$1.6 billion in follow-on capital, forged new relationships with over 20 strategic partners, and obtained 7 new FDA product approvals.

In conjunction with the first closing of Fund V, Lumira announced that co-founder Gerry Brunk has been named Managing Partner. Mr. Brunk will play a central role in driving the strategy and execution of Fund V and the firm's next phase of growth. As part of this planned leadership evolution, Lumira also announced that Peter van der Velden will transition to the role of Executive Chairman. In this capacity, he will continue to support the firm's strategic direction, mentor its next generation of leaders, and engage with key stakeholders and investors with a focused lens on Canada while also ensuring continuity of Lumira's investment philosophy and culture.

"Fund V represents the next step in our commitment to building globally competitive healthcare companies from Canada and across North America, including those founded in markets that have historically been underserved by traditional coastal venture capital firms," said Mr. Brunk. "In a more selective capital environment, our continued goal is to pair a disciplined, thesis-driven investment approach with hands-on, board-level support of our companies. Our investment team does this with a relentless focus on patient impact and industry-leading realized returns."

Fund V is anchored by a diversified group of returning and new institutional investors, strategic limited partners, and family offices, reflecting sustained support for the firm's strategy, performance track record, and platform. "We deeply appreciate the continued support of our long-time partners and are excited to welcome a new group of financial and strategic investors to the Lumira community," added Mr. Brunk.

"We are pleased to continue our longstanding relationship with Lumira Ventures as an anchor investor in Lumira Ventures V," said Ian Carew, Managing Director & Venture Partner at Northleaf Capital Partners. "Lumira's disciplined approach to healthcare investing, combined with its deep Canadian roots and a cross-border platform, aligns well with our mandate to back experienced fund managers with a consistent track record of strong distributed returns while supporting innovation that benefits patients and health systems."

"The Fonds de solidarité FTQ has invested in several of Lumira's funds since the firm's launch. Lumira has demonstrated an ability to identify and scale high-potential healthcare companies, helping them connect with sophisticated capital, strategic partners, and exit pathways. These are important assets for entrepreneurs from Québec and elsewhere in Canada looking to bring their innovative products to market," said Maxime Pesant, Vice-President, Private Equity and Impact Investing - Life Sciences, Fonds de solidarité FTQ. "The new Lumira Ventures V fund will play an important role in advancing domestic medical innovation on the global stage."

Lumira is also pleased to announce the promotion of Isabelle Harris to Associate. Based in Toronto, Ms. Harris focuses on sourcing and evaluating new investment opportunities and supporting portfolio companies in both the biotech and medtech sectors. "Isabelle has quickly become a valued member of our investment team, bringing strong analytical rigor, sector insight, and a deep commitment to our mission of improving patient outcomes," said Mr. van der Velden. "Her promotion to Associate is well deserved and underscores Lumira's focus on building a durable, next-generation investment platform and team that can continue to serve our entrepreneurs and investors for years to come."

"From our vantage point, this is one of the most compelling moments in decades to be deploying capital into healthcare innovation," said Mr. Brunk. "Scientific and technological advances are accelerating and healthcare systems are under intense pressure to adopt solutions that both improve outcomes and reduce costs. At the same time, capital has become more selective, which we believe favors experienced specialist healthcare investors who can underwrite risk rigorously and build companies in a disciplined, capital-efficient way. We continue to see attractive exit dynamics in the sectors targeted by Fund V, with well-capitalized strategic acquirers actively looking to replenish their product pipelines over the next decade, creating a robust environment for high-quality private companies to achieve liquidity. This combination of secular tailwinds, robust exit conditions, and a more rational funding environment creates a uniquely attractive opportunity for an experienced healthcare venture firm with fresh capital."

About Lumira Ventures
Lumira Ventures is a leading multi-stage healthcare investment firm with partners in Toronto, Montréal, Vancouver, and Boston. As Canada's largest and most active dedicated life sciences venture capital investor, Lumira invests in biotechnology and medical device companies developing best-in-class products, often located in secondary venture capital markets across North America. We partner with mission-driven entrepreneurs to develop transformative healthcare solutions while generating strong financial returns and societal impact. Lumira's portfolio companies have successfully brought to market dozens of biomedical innovations that are improving the lives of millions of patients worldwide. For more information, visit www.lumiraventures.com.

Media Contact
Jacki Jenuth, Ph.D.
Partner and Chief Operating Officer
[email protected]

SOURCE: Lumira Ventures

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