RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC--The North Carolina Biotechnology Center here selected the Durham firm Eno River Capital to set up and manage the center's new Bioscience Investment Fund. The center also obtained a commitment from Charlotte-based NationsBank to invest up to $5 million in the fund, which will invest in new biotechnology and bioscience companies in the state.
The biotechnology center conceived of the fund last year to stimulate the creation and growth of new biotechnology and bioscience companies in North Carolina. The state's General Assembly appropriated $7.5 million for the fund in 1997, and the center is working to raise an additional $22.5 million from the state and from private investors.
Investments by the fund in North Carolina companies, expected to start being placed by early fall, will range from $500,000 to $2 million per company, according to Tom Laundon, vice-president of business and technology development at the center.