A side-by-side comparison of two Healthcare investors: Deerfield Management (Power Score 83/100) and Novo Holdings (Power Score 83/100), both ranked among the most active firms tracked in this category.
| Deerfield Management | Novo Holdings | |
|---|---|---|
| Power Score™ | 83/100 | 83/100 |
| Assets Managed | More than $16B (in assets as of December 2025, per the firm's own About page; the figure could not be checked against Form ADV Item 5.F) | €93B (approx.; DKK 694bn total assets under management at 31 December 2025, per the Novo Holdings Annual Report 2025, of which DKK 407bn is the holding in Novo Nordisk) |
| Founded | 1994 | 1999 |
| Headquarters | New York, NY | Hellerup, Denmark |
| Sectors | Therapeutics, Medical Devices, Healthcare, Diagnostics, Digital Health, Life Sciences | Pharmaceuticals, Biotech, Medtech, Healthcare, Synthetic Biology, Climate, Deep Tech, Real Estate, Infrastructure |
Deerfield describes itself as an investment firm dedicated to advancing healthcare through investment, intelligence and philanthropy, and says it holds a portfolio of more than two hundred private and public investments spanning therapeutics, medical devices, healthcare services, diagnostics and digital health. It states that it invests across capital structures and across company stages, from early-stage startups to mature companies, and that it offers structured finance solutions and customised financing for entrepreneurs and corporate partners in both public and private markets. Alongside the funds it runs an in-house research and data organisation: Deerfield Intelligence is described as the firm's data, technology and AI arm, and Deerfield Discovery and Development (3DC) as its internal R&D engine, taking early-stage therapeutics from discovery through preclinical proof of concept into clinical development. Deerfield also builds companies with academic and health-system partners through named discovery alliances. It is an SEC-registered investment adviser (CRD 157876, SEC file 801-73284) and files quarterly 13F reports covering listed equities, ADSs and convertible notes, so its public-market activity sits alongside its private investing rather than replacing it.
View full Deerfield Management profile →Novo Holdings A/S is the holding and investment company of the Novo Nordisk Foundation, responsible for managing the Foundation's assets and wealth. Its stated purpose is to improve people's health and the sustainability of society and the planet by generating long-term returns on the Foundation's assets. Its work splits into two parts. First, it is the controlling shareholder of the Novo Group companies Novo Nordisk A/S and Novonesis A/S, holding more than 25 per cent of the ordinary share capital of each, including all the preferred A shares, and more than 70 per cent of the votes; the firm states its strategy is to be a stable and supportive owner of the Novo Group. Second, it runs an investment portfolio in two parts: Life Science Investments, made up of the Seed, Venture, Principal Investments, Planetary Health Investments and Asia teams, and Capital Investments, which manages equities, bonds, real estate, infrastructure and private equity, builds relationships with external equity and fixed income fund managers, and makes direct public equity and bond investments. The firm says it invests in almost all life science segments including pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, medical technology, healthcare services and industrial biosolutions, across North America, Europe and Asia. It is headquartered in Hellerup, Denmark, with offices in Boston, San Francisco, London, Singapore, Shanghai and Mumbai, and states that it employs more than 200 people and has made 180-plus direct investments.
View full Novo Holdings profile →