In June 2023, RTW Biotech Opportunities (RTWBIO) changed its name from RTW Venture Fund to more accurately reflect the company’s full life cycle approach to biotech investing. On 5 July 2023, RTWBIO announced its capital allocation plans for the proceeds received from Merck’s acquisition of Prometheus Biosciences which, when announced, was the company’s largest holding at 14.8% of NAV. The acquisition price was a 75.4% premium to the pre-bid level. Prometheus is a good example of RTW’s long-term, full life cycle investment approach, which supports businesses ranging from new company formation to mid-stage venture to pre-IPO and public markets. Investing in early-stage private assets provides RTWBIO with access to experimental data that typically are not widely available and provides time to build relationships with entrepreneurs and management teams. Given RTWBIO’s blend of public and private investments, there is no pressure to sell a company after its IPO.
