Aristotelis Nastos

NRW.Bank (Private Equity) (NRWB PE) is the private equity operating division of the NRW Bank which traces their origins to 2002 when Westdeutsche Landesbank Girozentrale was split up into two entities. From this basis and further to the 2004 Reorganization Act, the current foundations for NRW Bank were established. Headquartered in Dusseldorf, Germany, NRWB PE specializes in providing capital and business development support for SMEs in North Rhine-Westphalia. They manage a number of private equity funds. Through mezzanine capital as a co-investor alongside lead investors, they provide equity limited to minority stakes as a silent partner.

Scienion AG develops and provides DNA biochips and protein microarrays. It provides its customers in the pharmaceutical, biotech, diagnostic and reagent supply markets, as well as in academic research institutions with products, and services to facilitate confidence and efficiency in aspects of its applications. The company was founded by Holger Eickhoff in 2000 and is headquartered in Dortmund, Germany.

AYOXXA Biosystems GmbH operates as a biotechnology firm. Its lunaris technology is the optimal analysis platform for the pre-clinical and clinical development work. The firm offers In-situ encoded bead array, a multiplexed protein analysis platform that allows users to measure proteins and biomolecular analytes. The company was founded by Dieter Trau and Andreas Schmidt in 2010 and is headquartered in Cologne, Germany.

CEVEC Pharmaceuticals GmbH engages in the manufacture of biopharmaceuticals using a human cell-based expression system. It provides therapeutic proteins and monoclonal antibodies. The company was founded by Stefan Kochanek in 2004 and is headquartered in Cologne, Germany.

Protagen AG specializes in the development of novel diagnostic and companion diagnostic tests. Its products and services include GMP analyses, protein identification and analyses, proteome studies, UNIchip, clone and array, Bio-IT, Modiro as well as ProteinScape and Solver. The company was founded by Stefan Müllner, Helmut E. Meyer, Petra Weingarten and Martin Blüggel in 1997 and is headquartered in Dortmund, Germany.

Peppermint Holding GmbH operates as a holding company with interests in textile industries. Its company portfolios include Zwickauer Kammgarn, Ertex Jacquard, and Color Textil. The company was founded by Ingeborg Neumann in 1997 and is headquartered in Berlin, Germany.

DIREVO Industrial Biotechnology GmbH provides bioengineering services for industrial, molecular biology, and reaction chemistry applications. It offers enzyme and strain engineering, application development, and process engineering services. The firm also offers research and development services for bio-fuel production. The company was founded in July 2008 and is headquartered in Cologne, Germany.

Creathor Venture Management GmbH is an independent private equity firm specialized in technology venture capital investing. Creathor was foundedi n 2003 and is headquartered in Bad Homburg near Frankfurt in central Germany. The management invests their own capital, and manages venture capital funds on behalf of institutions.