Claret Capital Partners

Claret Capital Partners is a London-based growth capital firm specializing in venture debt and equity for European life sciences and technology companies. Spun out from Harbert European Growth Capital in 2021, the firm has built one of Europe’s larger dedicated growth-stage venture debt practices, with the ability to provide flexible capital structures that complement equity rounds and extend runway efficiently for capital-intensive businesses.

The healthcare-relevant thesis covers health IT, healthcare software, AI/ML in healthcare, and biotech, with active engagement across companies that have moved past early commercial validation and are scaling toward profitability or major capital events. The firm is comfortable with the capital intensity typical of European life sciences and healthcare software businesses and structures its facilities to match the realities of clinical, regulatory, and commercial development cycles.

Claret invests at Series B, Series C, and growth rounds with check sizes of $5M to $25M, deployed primarily as venture debt with equity participation in select cases. Geographic focus is Europe, including the United Kingdom and continental Europe, with an emphasis on companies that have institutional equity backing and clear paths to value-creating milestones. Founders should think of Claret as a complementary capital provider that extends the runway and impact of equity rounds rather than as an equity lead investor.

The team brings deep experience in venture debt structuring, growth equity, and operating roles across European technology and life sciences. Investment decisions move through a formal credit and investment process that engages substantively with each company’s commercial trajectory, equity backers, and capital needs. The firm prides itself on providing structuring flexibility that suits the realities of growth-stage healthcare and technology businesses, where rigid debt covenants can constrain operational decision-making.

Claret’s working approach is professional, partnership-oriented, and aligned with the long-term success of portfolio companies. Founders describe a partner that is responsive and pragmatic, particularly during the inevitable moments when commercial milestones slip or strategic options need to be reconsidered. The firm’s experience across European healthcare and life sciences gives it pattern recognition that informs portfolio engagement and produces useful introductions across follow-on equity investors, strategic acquirers, and operating advisors. Reporting expectations are formal and aligned with credit norms, including detailed financial reporting and covenant compliance, but the firm’s engagement style is collaborative rather than adversarial. Claret will not be the right fit for early-stage companies without institutional equity backing or for founders looking for primary equity capital. But for European healthcare, biotech, and technology founders raising growth-stage rounds who want to extend runway, reduce dilution, or finance specific capital needs through a structured debt facility, Claret Capital Partners represents one of the most experienced and well-positioned specialist providers operating today, with a deep understanding of European growth-stage dynamics and a track record of supporting companies through significant value creation events.