In Deep Brain Stimulation, Sapiens Adopts Wise Model

In early June, young company Sapiens Steering Brain Stimulation BV raised €13 million ($18.6 million) from its Series A round, co-led by Wellington Partners and Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners. [See Deal] Life Sciences Partners also participated. The financing was the largest Series A round for a European device company since 2005, and it certainly ranks near the top of the list of Series A device financings on the other side of the Atlantic as well. The company has a preclinical stage device in an emerging field, so the vote of confidence on the part of early stage investors is all the more unusual.

But like many start-ups funded these days, Sapiens is older than it looks. Founded in 2011, the company had a...