BGF leads €3 million investment round into Mullingar-based Ostoform

BGF has led a €3 million equity investment round in Ostoform, a specialist medical device business. Based in Mullingar in Co. Westmeath, Ostoform designs and manufactures medical seals for use with patients who have received a colostomy, Ileostomy or urostomy. The company is led by CEO and founder Kevin Kelleher.

Earlier this year, Ostoform was awarded a grant of €2.7 million via the Disruptive Technologies Innovation Fund (DTIF) to support the development of the company’s product pipeline which means the company now has almost €6 million to support growth and development.

This is the second equity investment in an Irish medtech company by BGF this year. In February, BGF invested €6 million in Vasorum, a Dublin-based, high-growth medical device business specialising in sophisticated devices used to close arterial punctures in vascular, cardiology, radiology and neuro-radiology procedures.

BGF takes minority positions in growing businesses and aims to support and facilitate the growth plans of founders and owners. BGF in Ireland is supported by the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) and the main Irish banks.

Ostoform’s key product currently is the Ostoform Seal used by ostomy patients. The Ostoform Seal has been shown to significantly reduce the risk of skin complications, positively impacting patient quality of life. The product is exported globally, with a particular focus on the US where it is being distributed by Medline.

In addition to the investment from BGF, this equity round has been supported by Enterprise Ireland and existing investors including HBAN MedTech who first invested in Ostoform as the company spun out of the University of Limerick in 2018.

Following the transaction Mark Sykes, investor at BGF will join the board of Ostoform. Ray Cantwell and Paul Gilson will remain as non-executive chairman and non-executive director, respectively.

“This is a landmark equity raise for us which will enable us to capitalise on growing international opportunities for our existing and pipeline products. We are delighted to have the support of BGF as we take the next steps on our journey.”

Kevin Kelleher, CEO of Ostoform

Mark Sykes, investor at BGF in Ireland, said: “Ostoform is a great example of Irish innovation in the medtech sphere, with their solutions having the potential to significantly improve the daily qualify of life for ostomy patients. The company has huge potential, and we are looking forward to working with Kevin and the team as they build out the business over the coming years.”

Leo Casey, Head of BGF in Ireland added: “Despite the disruption caused by COVID-19 we continue to see a very strong pipeline of companies interested in our support. This is our 3rd investment this year and the 9th equity investment we have made in Ireland in less than 3 years and we expect to close further transactions in the coming weeks.”