How +ND Capital's Point-of-Care CAR-T Innovation Validates European Biotech Investment Strategy Through €225m Galapagos-CellPoint Transaction

The Deal: Transforming Cell Therapy Manufacturing

+ND Capital has achieved its second major exit in the European biotech landscape, marking a significant milestone in the firm’s investment thesis around decentralized healthcare manufacturing. Galapagos NV announced its acquisition of Dutch cell therapy innovator CellPoint, with +ND Capital serving as the sole venture capital backer of the company. The transaction structure includes an upfront payment of €125 million in cash, supplemented by milestone-based payments reaching up to €100 million—a total valuation that underscores the commercial viability of CellPoint’s proprietary technology platform.

Addressing the Current Limitations of CAR-T Delivery

Today’s CAR-T cell therapies face substantial operational challenges. The conventional manufacturing model requires extracting patient cells and processing them in remote, centralized facilities—a process that extends across six weeks and introduces complexities in logistics, elevated costs, and potential safety complications. CellPoint’s innovation tackles these bottlenecks head-on by introducing a fully integrated automated system that brings manufacturing closer to patients.

The company has engineered its xCellit software platform to monitor production in real-time, paired with Switzerland-based Lonza’s Cocoon® closed-system technology for automated cell and gene therapy manufacturing. This combination enables a vein-to-vein timeline of approximately six days—a dramatic compression from the industry standard exceeding 30 days. Patients could receive personalized CAR-T treatments within seven days of initial cell collection, rather than waiting extended periods.

Clinical Validation and Regulatory Progress

Clinical investigations utilizing CellPoint’s decentralized supply architecture have already secured regulatory approval across Belgium, Spain, and The Netherlands. Two Phase 1/2a trials targeting relapsed/refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma (rrNHL) and relapsed/refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (rrCLL) with a CD-19 CAR-T candidate are currently enrolling patients. Topline data anticipated in the first half of 2023 will provide critical evidence for the scalability and efficacy of the decentralized manufacturing model in human patients.

+ND Capital’s Strategic European Footprint

The Lausanne-based investment firm has demonstrated consistent execution in identifying and scaling European innovation. Beyond CellPoint, +ND Capital orchestrated the acquisition of Bern-based Arctos Medical by Novartis in late 2021—another validation of the firm’s company-building methodology. Arctos had developed optogenetic gene therapy technology for restoring vision in retinal degeneration patients, showcasing the firm’s range across multiple therapeutic modalities.

+ND Capital established its European operations in 2019 with Fund III, raising $335 million to pursue both sides of the Atlantic investment opportunities. The European strategy centers on company creation and Series A deployment, leveraging the continent’s robust scientific infrastructure and experienced talent pools. Of its seven European investments to date, two have successfully exited—a track record that validates the firm’s thesis on untapped European innovation.

The Broader Implications for Cancer Immunotherapy

The point-of-care manufacturing paradigm represents a fundamental shift in how advanced cell therapies can be democratized. By shortening timelines and reducing manufacturing complexity, this model has potential to expand access across patient populations currently limited by capacity constraints and geographical barriers. The partnership between CellPoint’s technology and Lonza’s manufacturing expertise illustrates how convergence across disciplines—software automation, cell biology, and logistics—creates transformative healthcare solutions.

For cancer patients, this translates into faster treatment deployment, improved safety profiles through quicker cellular processing, and cost efficiencies that could broaden eligibility beyond current patient cohorts.