Q4 2021
PitchBook Analyst Note: Venture Debt in Life Sciences
November 11, 2021
Low revenue, no problem: Venture debt rises in life sciences
Venture debt has grown significantly over the past year, with much of its success, and therefore much of the attention, on tech. But the life sciences space has also seen its venture loan book value grow, notching $4.5 billion in aggregate value last year—despite zero- to low-revenue companies making up a large portion of the portfolio companies.
Our latest analyst note takes a deep dive into the rise and risk of venture debt among companies in life sciences, exploring the reasons behind the growth and what makes the sector so attractive to lenders.
Table of contents
Venture debt has grown significantly over the past year, with much of its success, and therefore much of the attention, on tech. But the life sciences space has also seen its venture loan book value grow, notching $4.5 billion in aggregate value last year—despite zero- to low-revenue companies making up a large portion of the portfolio companies.
Our latest analyst note takes a deep dive into the rise and risk of venture debt among companies in life sciences, exploring the reasons behind the growth and what makes the sector so attractive to lenders.
Table of contents
| Key takeaways | 1 |
| Introduction | 2 |
| Venture debt market in life sciences | 3 |
| Risks of lending to life sciences companies | 4 |
| Pressure outlets for risk in life sciences | 5 |
| Moving forward | 9 |