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Press release - 19 June 2006

CapMan and Investor Growth Capital invest in Neoventa Medical

CapMan Life Science IV fund managed by CapMan and Investor Growth Capital invest in Neoventa Medical AB, a Swedish medical technology company within the area of fetal monitoring. Following these investments, CapMan Life Science IV and Investor Growth Capital will each have an approximately 30% stake in Neoventa. The majority of the other shares will be retained by SEB Företagsinvest. The new shareholder structure will together secure a total capital injection of EUR 8 million (SEK 75 million) that will finance the next phase of growth for Neoventa with a focus on the US market.

Neoventa’s core product STAN® has been shown to significantly reduce the risk that a fetus will suffer from oxygen deficiency and brain injury during childbirth. STAN® works by analysing the shape of the ECG waveform of the fetus during delivery. Changes in fetal ECG shape are an indicator of oxygen deficiency and this information helps clinicians make more informed decisions for intervention. STAN® is currently used in 22 countries and in approximately 100,000 deliveries each year. STAN® was recently approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), opening up the world’s largest market for fetal monitoring. Neoventa has 19 employees and is based in Mölndal, Sweden.  

“Neoventa is a small, highly specialised company with a superior technology in a market currently dominated by large players. With the support of our new and existing owners we will continue to take market share in Europe and introduce STAN® to new markets. We look forward to working with both Investor Growth Capital and CapMan,” says Simon Grant, CEO of Neoventa.  

“Neoventa has achieved a user-base of over 350 hospitals - a strong foothold for further growth. Neoventa has great potential to establish a new standard of care in the maternity care market. The demand for the product is very strong and STAN® will be instrumental in millions of births in the future securing an uneventful delivery,” said Johan Bennarsten from CapMan.  

“Our review of the extensive published clinical data confirmed our belief that STAN® offers significant advantages over existing methods. FDA approval and new studies including some 50,000 patients provide further positive support for STAN® that will drive clinical acceptance,” states Thomas Eklund from Investor Growth Capital.  

Björn Österlund representing SEB Företagsinvest who has been a major shareholder in Neoventa since 1999 adds that “The last years’ strategic work has been incredibly important for the company’s strong clinical and technical base, an achievement we would never have reached without Neoventa's great team in Mölndal. It is with strong confidence that we will now continue to expand the business into new markets together with financially strong new co-owners.”  

For further information please contact:
Johan Bennarsten, Deputy Head of CapMan Life Science, tel: +46 707 49 56 59
Simon Grant, CEO, Neoventa Medical, tel: +46 733 72 22 01

CapMan
CapMan is one of the leading private equity investors in the Nordic countries and specialises in middle market buyouts in various industry sectors, investments in expansion and later stage technology companies and investments in life science companies. In addition, CapMan manages private equity real estate funds. The CapMan team comprises around 100 people in Helsinki, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Oslo. CapMan manages Nordic funds with approx. EUR 2.3 billion in total capital. To date, the funds managed by CapMan have invested in 152 companies in the Nordic countries and exited from 86 companies. The latest investments are made in Finnish Tamro MedLab Oy, Danish ScanJour A/S, Swedish Spintop Netsolution AB and Norwegian InfoCare ASA. The portfolio of CapMan’s first private equity real estate fund consists of 19 commercial properties in the Helsinki metropolitan area. CapMan Plc is listed on the Main List of the Helsinki Stock Exchange. www.capman.com  

Neoventa Medical
Neoventa Medical AB is a privately held Swedish company that develops and markets monitoring and management tools for improved perinatal healthcare. Neoventa has combined unique medical expertise with the latest technology to establish ST analysis as one of the most exciting advances within the field of perinatal medicine. STAN® S31 is the latest in a series of products for this purpose. www.neoventa.com    

Investor Growth Capital
Investor Growth Capital is the  wholly owned venture capital arm of Investor AB, the largest industrial holding company in the Nordic region. . Investor Growth Capital invests in high-quality, growth-oriented companies, primarily in the information technology and healthcare industries, in North America, Northern Europe and Asia. www.investorgrowthcapital.com  

SEB Företagsinvest
SEB Företagsinvest is the venture capital arm of SEB, a leading Nordic and North European financial institution. SEB Företagsinvest has made over 70 investments and 30 exits since inception in 1995. With 15 professionals in Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö, SEB Företagsinvest targets growth investments in Technology and Life Science. www.seb.se/foretagsinvest