The Berlin based start-up company Vara has raised €6.5 million in a Series A financing round to further expand its AI system for the early detection of breast cancer into other European countries and develop new applications for the company's data storage facilities. OMERS Ventures leads the list of funders, along with previous investor Merantix AG, Think.Health, Soleria Capital and Silicon Valley-based investor Plug and Play. The international law firm Taylor Wessing provided legal advice to OMERS Ventures during the financing round, led by Berlin-based partner Norman Röchert.
Vara's CE-certified software helps radiologists to detect cancer in mammograms and is not limited to digital image analysis, but also includes an end-to-end workflow and reporting system. In addition to Germany, Vara software is already being used to automatically read and record radiological images in Spain, Poland, Austria and Switzerland.
OMERS Ventures is a transatlantic venture investor with a focus on growth-oriented, disruptive technology companies. The company provides early stage capital to accelerate growth and scale. OMERS Ventures is part of OMERS, one of Canada’s largest defined benefit pension plans, with CAD$109 billion in net assets, with specialized teams focusing on private equity and growth equity in addition to venture capital. OMERS Ventures has made more than 50 investments in technology companies in North America and Europe.
Legal advisors OMERS Ventures
Taylor Wessing: Lead Partner Dr. Norman Röchert (Partner, Corporate), Christian Ahrendt (Senior Associate, Corporate), Dr. Gregor Schmid (Partner), Randy Piper (Associate), both IP, Nico Jänicke (Salary Partner, Employment Law), Volker Herrmann (Salary Partner), Matthias Swiderski (Associate), both Disputes & Investigations, all Berlin, Dr. Manja Epping (Partner), Dr. Andrea Sautter (Senior Associate), both Patents Technology & Life Sciences, both Munich, Dr. Bert Kimpel (Partner, Tax Law, Düsseldorf)
