Düsseldorf/Münster, March 17, 2026
NRW.BANK has invested 3.5 million euros in the Dortmund-based biotechnology start-up iDEL Therapeutics via its NRW.Venture venture capital fund. The promotional bank’s investment formed part of a seed financing round, in which the young company raised a total of 9 million euros. iDEL Therapeutics is developing an innovative method to increase the effectiveness of cancer therapies whilst simultaneously reducing their side effects.
”iDEL Therapeutics’ technology has the potential to improve cancer therapy – and thus the treatment of a disease that represents one of the greatest medical challenges facing our society,” says Johanna Antonie Tjaden-Schulte, member of the Managing Board of NRW.BANK. “As the promotional bank for North Rhine-Westphalia, we are actively supporting ideas and technologies that improve people’s lives. At the same time, we are strengthening North Rhine-Westphalia as a centre for life sciences through our investments.”
New approach for more targeted cancer therapies
iDEL Therapeutics’ approach is known as a drug delivery system. This area of biomedical technology researches how active substances can be precisely transported to their intended locations in the body and released at the right place. iDEL Therapeutics’ solution specifically targets cancer cells and delivers active substances directly to them, leaving healthy cells unharmed. This approach reduces side effects while improving the effectiveness of cancer treatment.
The biotech start-up was established in September 2025 and is based at the Biomedicine Centre Dortmund. iDEL Therapeutics will use the funding from the current financing round to further develop its technology and lay the groundwork for clinical evaluation.
In addition to NRW.Venture, Gründerfonds Ruhr and KHAN Technology Transfer Fund-II also participated in the financing round, with BioMedVC acting as lead investor.
For more information, visit www.nrwbank.de/en/founder/nrwventure
NRW.BANK - the promotional bank for North Rhine-Westphalia
NRW.BANK is the promotional bank of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). In close partnership with its owner, the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, the Bank helps to strengthen SMEs and start-ups, create affordable housing and improve public infrastructure. To fulfil its mandate, NRW.BANK offers people, enterprises and local authorities tailor-made financing solutions and advisory services. It cooperates with its financing partners, in particular all banks and savings banks, on a competition-neutral basis. NRW.BANK operates largely independently of the state budget. In order to accelerate the transformation processes, the promotional bank provides effective promotional impulses – for a sustainable, climate-neutral and digital North Rhine-Westphalia.