Three EIS companies at the forefront of medicine – all backed by Wealth Club investors
Don't invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. Take 2 mins to learn more.
Estimated reading time: 2 min
Due to the potential for losses, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) considers this investment to be high risk.
What are the key risks?
- You could lose all the money you invest
- If the business you invest in fails, you are likely to lose 100% of the money you invested. Most start-up businesses fail.
- You are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong
- Protection from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), in relation to claims against failed regulated firms, does not cover poor investment performance. Try the FSCS investment protection checker here.
- Protection from the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) does not cover poor investment performance. If you have a complaint against an FCA-regulated firm, FOS may be able to consider it. Learn more about FOS protection here.
- You won’t get your money back quickly
- Even if the business you invest in is successful, it may take several years to get your money back. You are unlikely to be able to sell your investment early.
- The most likely way to get your money back is if the business is bought by another business or lists its shares on an exchange such as the London Stock Exchange. These events are not common.
- If you are investing in a start-up business, you should not expect to get your money back through dividends. Start-up businesses rarely pay these.
- Don’t put all your eggs in one basket
- Putting all your money into a single business or type of investment for example, is risky. Spreading your money across different investments makes you less dependent on any one to do well.
- A good rule of thumb is not to invest more than 10% of your money in high-risk investments.
- The value of your investment can be reduced
- The percentage of the business that you own will decrease if the business issues more shares. This could mean that the value of your investment reduces, depending on how much the business grows. Most start-up businesses issue multiple rounds of shares.
- These new shares could have additional rights that your shares don’t have, such as the right to receive a fixed dividend, which could further reduce your chances of getting a return on your investment.
If you are interested in learning more about how to protect yourself, visit the FCA’s website here.
“Our world-leading life sciences sector employs hundreds of thousands of people and is a powerhouse for economic growth,” Chancellor Rachel Reeves said, and the government is keen to make the UK a “life sciences superpower”.
Investors in the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) play a vital role: they provide some of the “patient capital” that can potentially help pioneering research in the UK commercialise and scale.
To encourage investment, the government offers EIS investors generous tax reliefs – including up to 30% income tax relief – to somewhat mitigate the high risk of investing in the early-stage companies.
This article looks at three such innovative companies backed by Wealth Club investors – two are still available for investment. You should form your own view.
Read more on these three companies – and how you could invest
- Astral Systems – Drawing on principles discovered by NASA, Astral has invented a nuclear reactor so compact it could fit in a broom cupboard. It can produce on demand the hard-to-acquire radioisotopes vital to cancer treatment and research.
- Novai – Novai’s pioneering diagnostic technology combines AI with a proprietary biomarker to detect microscopic evidence of “silent” eye diseases – up to three years earlier than existing technologies, when intervention could still save eyesight.
- 4D Medicine – 4D Medicine has invented a bio-absorbable polymer to 3D-print medical implants too difficult for conventional polymers. Compressed and inserted by a surgeon through a narrow incision, the implants regain shape in contact with body heat.
Important: The information on this website is for experienced investors. It is not a personal recommendation to invest. If you’re unsure, please seek advice. Investments are for the long term. They are high risk and illiquid and can fall as well as rise in value: you could lose all the money you invest
Producing cancer-treating radioisotopes on demand
1. Astral Systems EIS: nuclear fusion reactor that could fit inside a broom cupboard
Nuclear fusion technology is not new – but Astral is one of only a few companies globally to have commercialised it. Astral is using the technology to address the short supply of radioisotopes used in pioneering cancer treatment and research.
Currently, 85% of the world’s medical isotopes is supplied by just six ageing nuclear fission reactors, most due to come offline by 2030.
Applying principles discovered by NASA, Astral has developed a nuclear fusion device so compact it could be installed in hospital or lab premises to produce on-demand the necessary radioisotopes for cancer treatment and research.
With cancer cases still on the rise, major pharmaceutical companies are investing heavily to develop radiopharmaceuticals. These drug compounds use small amounts of radioactive material, called radioisotopes, to seek out and destroy specific cancer cells, whilst sparing healthy tissue and reducing side effects.
Achievements and current fundraise
Founded in 2021, the company has generated c.£3 million in contracted revenue to date. It is now manufacturing six commercial fusion reactors – some to be delivered as soon as this summer – to clients such as the UK Atomic Energy Authority and the National Nuclear Laboratory. It plans to produce a further 30-50 reactors following the close of its current Series A funding round.
Wealth Club investors have an opportunity to invest alongside Astral’s backers, which include Playfair Capital (early investors in Stripe and Thought Machine), SpeedInvest (one of Europe’s largest early-stage investors) and Mercia Asset Management.
- Target return based on Company’s forecasts: 7x, not guaranteed
- Tax relief available in: 2025/26 tax year (carry back to 2024/25)
- Minimum investment: £20,000 (final close 13 March – you can apply online)
Partnered with major pharma groups, including Roche
2. Novai EIS: pioneering technique to detect eye diseases sooner, to save sight
Novai has created technology that can detect eye diseases such as glaucoma and age-related macular degeneration (AMD) up to three years earlier than existing methods. This could enable timely intervention and help to save patients’ sight.
Novai’s patented platform DARC delivers a biomarker to the retina and uses AI image analysis that can detect the minutest traces of disease in each retinal cell.
As the company’s founder/CEO Professor Francesca Cordeiro says, “There’s nothing else in medicine that uses this technology.”
Novai builds on 15 years of research conducted at University College of London by CEO and founder Professor Francesca Cordeiro, a world-leading ophthalmologist and Chair of Ophthalmology at Imperial College London. The aim is for the technology to eventually also be used to detect cancer and brain diseases.
Achievements and current fundraise
Unusually for an early-stage life sciences company, Novai has already started to generate revenue. It has partnered with over 20 blue-chip groups (including Roche, Boehringer Ingelheim and Heidelberg Engineering) and reports c.$6 million contracted revenue to date.
To accelerate its growth, the Company is currently seeking to raise up to £2 million under an Advance Subscription Agreement (ASA). Wealth Club investors have an opportunity to invest alongside existing investor SFC Capital, the introducer of this offer.
- Target return based on Company’s forecasts: 8.7x, not guaranteed
- Tax relief available in: 2026/27 tax year (carry back to 2025/26), not guaranteed
- Minimum investment: £19,500 (next close 13 March – you can apply online)
Already attracting acquisition interest in a $multibillion global market
3. 4D Medicine: advanced biomaterial technology for surgical implants
Bio-absorbable surgical implants – e.g. orthopaedic screws, dermal fillers and nerve repair supports – are transforming healthcare. They provide temporary support and are then absorbed by the body – no need for removal surgery. However, they can degrade unpredictably and release acidic byproducts, causing inflammation and pain.
4D Medicine has developed an advanced biomaterial to overcome such issues. Its multi-patented polymer 4Degra® can used to 3D-print highly detailed, one-off medical devices – normally difficult to produce with conventional polymers. Importantly, it offers closer biocompatibility and controlled degradation, for better patient healing.
The company holds the rights to the five patent applications – two granted in the US. It estimates its addressable annual global market is $1 billion for bio-absorbable biomaterials, and $6 billion for bio-absorbable medical devices.
Achievements and recent fundraise
4D Medicine has already attracted the interest of a FTSE 250 company – but turned down the acquisition offer of c.£38 million in 2023, as it believes it could achieve a higher valuation after fully developing its suite of 4Degra® materials.
The Company recently closed a £2.9 million funding round, in which Wealth Club investors invested under EIS alongside SFC Capital, the introducer of the offer.
SFC Capital has participated in all 4D Medicine’s funding rounds to date. 4D Medicine is now one of the five largest investments in SFC's portfolio of 500+ companies and one of the most promising, in the manager's view.
The round is now closed, but you could invest in similar companies – though probably not 4D Medicine itself – through the Startup Funding Club All-Star Follow-on Fund EIS or the SFC Angel Fund SEIS.
Wealth Club aims to make it easier for experienced investors to find information on – and apply for – investments. You should base your investment decision on the offer documents and ensure you have read and fully understand them before investing. The information on this webpage is a marketing communication. It is not advice or a personal or research recommendation to buy, sell or hold any of the investments mentioned, nor does it include any opinion as to the present or future value or price of these investments. It does not satisfy legal requirements promoting investment research independence and is thus not subject to prohibitions on dealing ahead of its dissemination.
Alex Davies
Chief Executive
Alex was a board director at Hargreaves Lansdown, where he worked for 15 years. He was responsible for building Hargreaves Lansdown into the biggest direct-to-consumer SIPP provider in the UK with more than 150,000 clients and over £12 billion under management. He is a keen investor with a portfolio of shares, funds, student property, EIS and VCT investments.