MVM, the UK-based medical venture fund, has raised £100m (€160m) for its life-sciences start-up fund while Albany Ventures has gathered £22m for its early-stage healthcare and software fund, signaling confidence in the healthcare sector in an otherwise difficult investment climate.

Although small in comparison to recent buy-out funds such as Cinven's £4.3bn fund and Warburg Pincus' $5.3bn (€5.8bn) fund, MVM's and Albany's funds will be able to make investments in numerous start-up companies.