The Kurma Biofund II fund is led by Paris-based venture capital firm Kurma Life Science Partners (KLS) and is supported by other investors namely, CDC Entreprises, Idinvest Partners and New Enterprise Associates.
With a fundraising target of $99m, the new rare diseases fund has raised $58m to date and will work with a network of clinical and research institutes in Europe, according to Reuters.
In order to fund as many as 10 drug discovery start-up companies over the next three years, GSK also partnered with Avalon Ventures in a deal valued at $495m in April.