# Sarsia Sarsia is a Private Equity based in Bergen, Norway. ## Overview - **Organization type:** Private Equity - **Headquarters:** Bergen, Norway - **Region:** Europe - **Address:** Bergen, Norway - **Founded:** 2005 - **Assets under management:** Undisclosed - **Website:** sarsia.com - **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/sarsia ## Regulatory record - **Reports private funds:** No ## About Sarsia was founded in 2005 as a Nordic early-stage venture firm anchored in Bergen, Norway. Managing Partner Sveinung Hole rejoined the firm after leading Norway’s largest research-funding foundations, setting a tone that blends public-sector rigor with private-venture discipline. The firm does not disclose an originating family wealth source, operating instead as a traditional VC raising closed-end funds from institutional and private limited partners. Sarsia runs a concentrated strategy across life sciences and technology-energy-sustainability, investing seed and early-stage tickets into companies spun out of Nordic research environments. The current portfolio of 24 companies confirms active positions in clinical-stage biotechs such as Calluna Pharma, APIM Therapeutics, and Coegin Pharma, alongside industrial-tech and climate-named bets including Heimdall Power (grid monitoring via IoT), Cetasol (AI-driven vessel efficiency), and WindSim (wind-farm design software). A meaningful portion of the life-sciences book addresses unmet medical needs in oncology, immunology, and infectious disease, while the sustainability side spans the energy transition from EV charging infrastructure (Enua, Chargitect) to ocean data (Offshore Sensing) and maritime logistics (Keelspot). Geographically the firm concentrates deal flow from Norway and broader Scandinavia, with select European exposure via Swedish assets like Cetasol and portfolio linkages to markets in Germany, France, and the UK. Sarsia has raised three funds to date, amassing a reported total of NOK 1.3 billion in commitments — the composition points to a disciplined fund-cycle cadence rather than a permanent-capital structure. The partnership lists 14 professionals on its website, a number heavily weighted toward domain-deep operators: PhDs in microbiology, pharmacology, oceanography, and applied physics sit alongside AFA- and CEFA-qualified finance partners. In May 2026, portfolio company SonoClear completed the final patient procedure in its ultrasound-study enrollment, demonstrating the firm’s continued support for capital-intensive clinical-stage programs deep into their trials. Sarsia’s structural edge lies in a partnership model that embeds scientific practitioners directly into IC-level roles rather than relegating technical diligence to external advisors. Partners such as Øivind Enger (molecular biology) and Farzad Abdi-Dezfuli (pharmacology) personally lead life-science deals, while industrial-tech investments are steered by a team of engineers who hold CEFA financial-analyst credentials. This dual-literacy architecture reduces the principal–agent gap that plagues generalist venture firms dabbling in deep-tech, making Sarsia’s Nordic research-to-seed pipeline unusually self-contained. ## Sectors - ClimateTech - Digital Health - Energy Transition & Renewables - AgriTech & FoodTech - Mobility & Transportation - WaterTech - Industrial Tech - AI/ML ## People - Sveinung Hole — Managing Partner - Marit Wick — Partner and CFO - Øivind Enger — Partner, Life Science - Jon Trygve Berg — Partner Technology, Energy and Sustainability - Farzad Abdi-Dezfuli — Partner Life Sciences - Hilde Holdhus — Partner Technology, Energy and Sustainability - Jon-Kåre Hansen — Partner Technology, Energy and Sustainability - Henrik Solberg-Johansen — Partner Technology, Energy and Sustainability - Erlend Skagseth — Senior Partner - Maija Slaidiņa — Investment Manager, Life Science ## Questions ### Who runs investment decisions at Sarsia? Sveinung Hole serves as Managing Partner and anchors the investment committee alongside a sector-specialist partnership. Life-science decisions are led by partners Øivind Enger and Farzad Abdi-Dezfuli, both PhD-level scientists, while technology and sustainability deals are managed by partners Jon Trygve Berg, Hilde Holdhus, Jon-Kåre Hansen, and Henrik Solberg-Johansen — each pairing engineering or operational backgrounds with formal financial-analyst credentials. ### How does Sarsia source its deal flow? Sarsia sources predominantly from Nordic research universities and affiliated technology-transfer offices. The team’s academic background and its physical base in Bergen create direct pathways into Norwegian innovation clusters in marine, energy, and life sciences. Several partners previously managed research-commercialization units, giving them early visibility into spin-out opportunities before they register with pan-European venture platforms. ### What investment stages does Sarsia target? The firm concentrates on seed and early-stage equity rounds, with the capacity to follow on through clinical- or commercial-milestone financings. Its portfolio includes pre-revenue life-science companies progressing from Phase 1 through registration trials, as well as pre-commercial industrial-tech startups that have validated prototypes or first pilot customers. ### Does Sarsia lead rounds or co-invest alongside other VCs? Sarsia employs a co-investment approach, often leading or co-leading seed rounds into Nordic startups and syndicating follow-on capital with domestic and international venture firms. Its website emphasizes connecting founders to broader venture capital networks, and several portfolio companies — such as Nykode and BerGenBio — have progressed to public listings or attracted later-stage crossover investors. ### Which sectors does Sarsia explicitly avoid? Sarsia’s two stated investment areas — life sciences and technology, energy and sustainability — exclude pure-play software-as-a-service, consumer internet, and financial technology. The firm’s portfolio and partner biographies confirm no meaningful allocations to ad-tech, social media, or developer-tool startups unconnected to a physical-science or engineering advance. ### Where does Sarsia’s capital come from, and how is it governed? The firm’s capital comes from institutional and private limited partners through three commingled venture funds; it has not disclosed a single-family or endowment anchor. Governance is carried out by the partnership, with Olav Skjervheim serving as compliance officer overseeing regulatory adherence under Norwegian fund-management rules, a structure more aligned with a regulated asset manager than an unconstrained family office. ## Related profiles - [Sarsi](https://altss.com/profile/sarsi) - [Sartorius](https://altss.com/profile/sartorius) --- Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z Canonical page: https://altss.com/profile/sarsia-management Maintained by Altss — https://altss.com — methodology: https://altss.com/methodology