- Details
- By Chez Oxendine
- Health Care
Potawatomi Ventures, the investment arm of the Forest County Potawatomi Community, said it made a strategic investment in BAMF Health Inc., a Grand Rapids, Mich.-based healthcare company specializing in molecular imaging and radiopharmaceuticals. Terms were not disclosed.
BAMF Health is at the forefront of using intelligence-based precision medicine to detect and treat diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer’s. The company also conducts clinical trials for new radiopharmaceuticals, or medications containing radioactive compounds. Potawatomi Ventures’ investment will support BAMF’s ongoing research, product development, and market expansion.
The Series C round investment, finalized in July, was influenced by a conversation with Grand Rapids-based Waséyabek Development Company, the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi’s non-gaming business unit. Waséyabek had invested $3 million in BAMF Health in 2021 during the company’s Series B round.
Paul Hoesly, chief financial and strategy officer of Potawatomi Ventures, said that a conversation with Waséyabek’s president and CEO, Deidra Mitchell, began after Waséyabek shared news of its investment. In February of this year, Mitchell met with Potawatomi Ventures leadership in Waséyabek’s office and, in June, she shared thoughts on BAMF Health’s success in an email. All of that eventually led to Potawatomi Ventures representatives meeting with BAMF leadership.
“We spend a lot of time getting to know founders and fund managers: in this case, [founder and CEO] Anthony Chang and [COO] Chad Bassett. We spent a good amount of time understanding their strategic priorities,” Hoesly told Tribal Business News.
In turn, that led to a passive investment in the BAMF Health, making it part of a wider portfolio of passive investments that make up “around ten to fifteen percent” of Potawatomi Ventures’ holdings, Hoesley said. “We’re really excited to be a part of it.”
According to Hoesly, Potawatomi Ventures saw an opportunity to generate returns for the tribe, but also to contribute to improved cancer treatments with its investment.
“On the healthcare side, we're looking to invest in businesses that provide a strong ROI, but also businesses that solve problems, both in Indian Country and potentially across the world,” Hoesly said. “We saw a chance to do that here.”
Mitchell expressed her enthusiasm for another Potawatomi tribe joining the shareholder group.
“I think it's fabulous that Potawatomi Ventures invested in such a great technology we obviously believe in,” Mitchell told Tribal Business News. “It's been an exciting one to (watch) grow. We don't have an expectation of an exit soon, so it's going as planned.”
The Potawatomi Ventures investment follows a $5 million state grant issued to BAMF in June to help support a clinic in metropolitan Detroit.
In a statement, BAMF CEO Chang called the tribal companies’ investments a way for the health company to continue its work.
“Every day, we’re changing the lives of patients facing some of the most devastating diseases by making molecular imaging and therapy accessible and affordable,” Chang said. “With financial backing from Potawatomi Ventures and Waséyabek, we can make further progress in detecting and treating diseases like cancer, Alzheimer’s Disease, heart conditions and more.”
