CRB Health Tech closes its Digital Health Tech III fund at €50 million

CRB Health Tech has closed its CRB Digital Health Tech III fund at €50 million, consolidating its leadership position as a specialized digital health fund in Southern Europe and reinforcing a strategy focused on driving the technological transformation of the European healthcare sector. The fund significantly exceeded its initial target of around €30 million, marking a highly relevant oversubscription milestone in the current market environment.

The vehicle completed a first close of €20 million approximately a year and a half ago, coinciding with the entry of Sanitas as an investor. Since then, the incorporation of new industrial, institutional, and public partners has enabled the fund to complete its final close following the participation of CDTI.

“We managed to reach €50 million with an oversubscription close to twice the initial target,” says Ignasi Heras. “This is especially relevant because it validates market interest in a sector that has evolved from hype into infrastructure, and this fund size allows us not only to invest in the digital transformation of healthcare, but also to help build the European leaders that will define it.”

The fund has secured both private and institutional backing, with a particularly diverse investor base combining industrial, financial, and public stakeholders. Industrial investors include Sanitas (Bupa), Occident, Cantabria Labs, Roca Group, Aldo-Unión, GP Pharm, Mutua d’Enginyers Tiselab, and Reig Jofré, among others.

On the financial side, the fund includes the notable participation of bank CBNK, as well as families and entrepreneurs from Spain’s financial and private investment sectors. Meanwhile, the public-institutional component includes the Spanish Government through the Secretary of State for Telecommunications and Digital Transformation (SETT), as well as CDTI, Institut Català de Finances (ICF), and Barcelona City Council.

According to the management company, this group of investors reflects broad-based support for a strategy focused on the digitalization of healthcare systems and the transformation of healthcare through technology.

For CRB Health Tech, this combination of private and institutional capital validates the sector’s transformative potential. “Digitally transforming healthcare means improving the efficiency of healthcare systems and, ultimately, patient care. There is a shared vision that these technologies reduce costs, improve diagnoses, and optimize healthcare management,” Heras explains.

Digital health redefines its growth model in Europe

Enrique Castellón believes the digital health market is currently experiencing a particularly favorable moment. After two decades dominated by biotechnology and traditional medical technology, the sector is entering a new phase driven by AI, hospital digitalization, remote monitoring, and new healthcare delivery models.

In this regard, Alejo Costa highlights: “There was a clear opportunity because the three necessary elements already existed: strong technological innovation, major industrial players interested in digital transformation, and forecasts of sustained growth for the next decade. However, Southern Europe still lacked a benchmark fund focused exclusively on digital health.”

According to the fund’s managers, the growth of the European digital health ecosystem and the increase in corporate transactions within the sector reinforce the market’s development prospects for the coming years.

The investment strategy of CRB Digital Health Tech III focuses on companies that have already passed the clinical or regulatory validation stage and are ready to scale commercially. The goal is to accelerate business models with faster go-to-market timelines and the ability to generate returns within shorter timeframes than those typically associated with traditional biotechnology.

“We invest once the technology has already demonstrated validation and begins commercialization. The focus is on growth, expansion, and commercial development. This allows for earlier returns and the creation of companies capable of international scaling,” the team explains.

To date, the fund has already approved ten investments across several European markets, including Spain, Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. Approximately half of the portfolio will have a Spanish presence.

Investment universe

The fund focuses its investments on European digital health companies operating in areas such as AI applied to healthcare, mental health, hospital digitalization, digital diagnostics, and new healthcare efficiency tools.

Among the portfolio companies is Livo, a platform specialized in nursing and healthcare staff scheduling management, which is expanding into new hospital management areas and international markets.

The fund has also invested in Zoundream, a Barcelona-based startup that uses AI to interpret babies’ cries and identify patterns related to basic needs and certain developmental disorders.

Another notable portfolio company is Prosoma, a company focused on digital psycho-oncology that provides support to cancer patients through digital platforms and artificial intelligence tools. The company already works with insurers across several European markets and is preparing for international expansion.

CRB has also invested in companies linked to telemedicine, prevention and diagnostics, as well as enabling technologies that support national healthcare systems across Spain and Europe.

Beyond capital, CRB Health Tech advocates an active support model for its portfolio companies. The management team, composed of professionals with experience in biotechnology, digital health, technology transfer, and healthcare management, participates directly in the strategic development of startups.

“We are a very hands-on fund,” Heras emphasizes. “It is not only about providing financing. We aim to support companies through our operational, industrial, and technological expertise in the areas where they most need help to achieve their growth objectives.”

The firm expects to build a portfolio of approximately 25 companies through initial tickets ranging from €500,000 to €2 million, while also reserving additional capital to support the best-performing startups in follow-on rounds.

Regarding areas of greatest interest for future deals, CRB identifies particularly attractive opportunities in women’s health, mental health, AI-powered digital diagnostics, and hospital and pharmaceutical efficiency tools.

“AI is going to profoundly transform the healthcare sector. Adoption may be slower due to regulation and the need for clinical validation, but the potential is enormous in patient care, hospital processes, operational management, and pharmaceutical development,” the firm’s executives state, adding that digital health is increasingly consolidating itself as a particularly resilient sector amid macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty.

“In times of uncertainty, healthcare — and especially digital health — are perceived as defensive sectors. The need for transformation is evident, and healthcare technology is here to stay.” Population ageing, pressure on healthcare systems, and accelerating technological change are turning the sector into a structural priority for investors and institutions.

CRB Digital Health III:

CRB Digital Health III is the third fund managed by independent private equity firm CRB Health Tech, founded in 2008 by Enrique Castellón. The management company has a team with a strong track record in venture capital investment, managing funds that invest in innovative technology-based companies in healthcare, biomedicine, and medical technologies, currently with a focus on Digital Health.

More info at: https://crbhealthtech.com/