Fast Track Initiative

About the Company

Fast Track Initiative (FTI) is a venture capital firm from Japan that exclusively focuses its investment on early-stage life science and healthcare startups. Therapeutics is the primary investment focus, but it also invests in diagnostics, digital health, and healthcare services. FTI is a committed value-add investor with deep industry knowledge that helps portfolio companies with business and R&D strategy, strategic partnership, investor syndication, management recruitment. FTI is proud of its science-oriented approach, where it takes a deep and thorough look at the science and technology aspect in company assessments and hands-on support.

FTI started its history in 2004 with a mission to translate innovative academic research into life-saving products and services. Throughout 17 years of history, FTI has built a substantial collaborative relationship with academic researchers and pharma and healthcare industries. The total of approx. $200M AUM, FTI has invested in and helped more than 30 companies, including 8 companies that reached successful M&A/IPO exit. With the launch of the new fund, FTI recently started US activities and looks to scale it up over next few years.

[Example portfolio companies]

Modalis Therapeutics: A biotech company that focuses on developing transformative therapeutics for unmet medical needs using its proprietary platform of CRISPR-CAS technologies. Modalis was established based on the unique epigenetic gene modulation technology using engineered CAS proteins. Through this technology architect, Modalis is advancing therapies for orphan genetic diseases with the locus-specific modulation of gene expression or histone modification without the need for double-stranded DNA cleavage, gene editing or base editing. Modalis is headquartered in Tokyo with laboratories and R&D facilities in Cambridge.

Undisclosed company: A Boston-based drug discovery company that uses single cell RNA sequencing technology to identify novel drug targets and develop precision medicines that were not possible otherwise. It combines proprietary scRNA methods and a machine learning platform to identify underlining pathogenesis at an individual cell level. The company has developed its foundational technology with world-class scientists at Broad Institute and is backed by a group of highly recognized investors.