Alphabet's Life Science Tech Unit Verily Raises $1 Billion From Investors

Verily, Alphabet's life sciences division, on Thursday announced a $1 billion (roughly Rs. 7,000 crores) investment round led by private equity firm Silver Lake.

Alphabet Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat and Silver Lake Managing Director Egon Durban will be nominated to Verily's operating board, the company said.

Verily's existing board members include Chief Executive Andrew Conrad, Alphabet executives Larry Page, Sergey Brin and David Drummond and Temasek senior managing director Fidah Alsagoff, a company spokeswoman said.

Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan was among the new investors in the latest round.

Verily, which was previously part of Google's research and development unit, received an $800 million investment from Singapore state investor Temasek in 2017.

Verily said the new fund would support its investments, including in potential acquisitions and partnerships, and would advance its strategies that are complementary to its current portfolio.

The company has tied up with several pharma companies on projects that range from research on surgical robots to developing the retina scan technology for early detection of some eye diseases.

Verily did not disclose the financial terms of the latest investment round.

Goldman Sachs and Co LLC acted as financial adviser to the company.

© Thomson Reuters 2019