Novo Holdings A/S is a holding and investment company. It was incorporated in 1999 to manage the assets and the wealth of the Novo Nordisk Foundation, and is wholly owned by the Foundation.

The purpose of Novo Holdings is to generate long-term financial returns on the Foundation’s assets by investing in companies that share its vision to improve people’s health and the sustainability of society and the planet.

Novo Holdings holds the controlling shares in Danish life science companies Novo Nordisk and Novonesis.

In addition, Novo Holdings has a global investment portfolio comprising 180+ direct investments, the majority of which operate within the life sciences. The life science portfolio spans companies at all stages of development.

Novo Holdings’ investment portfolio also comprises capital investments. The capital investments portfolio includes equities, bonds, real estate and infrastructure assets as well as private equity investments.

Novo Holdings employs more than 200 people. Its headquarters are located in Copenhagen, Denmark, and it has offices in San Francisco, Boston, London, Singapore, and Shanghai.

The Novo Nordisk Foundation is a non-profit enterprise foundation established in Denmark in 1924. Its vision is to improve people’s health and the sustainability of society and the planet.

The Foundation’s philanthropic activities focus on three areas:

• Within Human health, the Foundation’s mission is to progress research and innovation in the prevention and management of cardiometabolic and infectious diseases, regenerative medicine, and equitable health outcomes.

• Within Sustainability, the mission is to advance knowledge and solutions to support the green transition in society.

• Within The life science ecosystem, the mission is to invest in scientific research, education, and innovation to enable a world-class life science ecosystem.

In 2024, the Foundation’s grants and philanthropic investments amounted to
DKK 10bn/EUR 1.34bn/USD 1.4bn

As a non-profit enterprise foundation, the Novo Nordisk Foundation owns companies and uses the proceeds from these companies and other investments for its philanthropic purposes. Through its wholly owned investment company Novo Holdings, the Foundation is the controlling shareholder of the Danish life sciences companies Novo Nordisk and Novonesis. According to its Articles of Association, the Foundation is obligated to maintain its controlling ownership in both companies, which allows them to focus on long-term value creation and sustainable development.

The Novo Nordisk Foundation is self-owned, which means that no legal or physical person has ownership rights to the Foundation’s assets.

The Foundation employs more than 200 people, most of whom are based at the head office in Copenhagen, Denmark. It has recently established branch offices in Delhi and Nairobi.

Novo Nordisk A/S is a healthcare company, founded in 1923 and headquartered in Denmark. Its purpose is to drive change to defeat serious chronic diseases, built upon its heritage in diabetes. It fulfils this purpose by pioneering scientific breakthroughs, expanding access to its medicines and working to prevent and ultimately cure disease.

Novo Nordisk is managed as a publicly held company with a fiduciary duty to its shareholders. Novo Nordisk’s stock consists of two types: A and B shares. An A share carries 10 times the votes of a B share. All A shares are owned by Novo Holdings. The B shares are listed on Nasdaq Copenhagen and on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) as American Depository Receipts (ADRs). Through its ownership of all the company’s A shares and a significant number of its B shares, Novo Holdings, and ultimately the Novo Nordisk Foundation, is the controlling shareholder in Novo Nordisk.

The combination of foundation ownership and stock listing enables Novo Nordisk to embark on long-term sustainable strategies while maintaining short-term transparency on performance.

Novonesis A/S is a global biosolutions company, formed in 2024 by a merger of Novozymes A/S and Chr. Hansen A/S and headquartered in Denmark. Its purpose is to better the world with biology.

By leveraging the power of microbiology with science, Novonesis transforms the way the world produces, consumes and lives. Its biosolutions in more than 30 industries are creating value for thousands of customers and benefiting the planet. Novonesis employs around 10,000 people worldwide.

Novonesis is managed as a publicly held company with a fiduciary duty to its shareholders. Novonesis’s stock consists of two types: A and B shares. An A share carries 10 times the votes of a B share. All A shares are owned by Novo Holdings. The B shares are listed on Nasdaq Copenhagen. Through its ownership of all the company’s A shares and a significant number of its B shares, Novo Holdings, and ultimately the Novo Nordisk Foundation, is the controlling shareholder in Novonesis.

The combination of foundation ownership and stock listing enables Novonesis to embark on long-term sustainable strategies while maintaining short-term transparency on performance.

The Novo Group comprises three independent companies, all controlled by the Novo Nordisk Foundation: Novo Holdings, Novo Nordisk, and Novonesis.

The Novo Group is not a legal entity, but a name used when referring to the three companies that are connected to the Novo Nordisk Foundation.

Novo Holdings is the controlling shareholder of both Novo Nordisk and Novonesis. It exercises its influence through the boards of directors of the two companies.

The Foundation places great importance on ensuring that the majority of the members on the boards of the two companies, including the chair, remain independent from the Foundation.This ensures that the board serves the interests of all shareholders and other stakeholders.

The Board of Directors of Novo Nordisk currently consists of 12 members, eight of whom were elected by the shareholders at the Annual General Meeting, and four were elected by Denmark-based employees of Novo Nordisk A/S. Novo Holdings is represented by two of the shareholder-elected members, while the other six shareholder-elected members are considered independent as defined by the Danish Recommendations on Corporate Governance.

The Board of Directors of Novonesis currently consists of 13 members, nine of whom were elected by the shareholders at the Annual General Meeting and four were elected by Denmark-based employees of Novonesis A/S. Novo Holdings is represented by two of the shareholder-elected members, while the other seven shareholder-elected members are considered independent as defined by the Danish Recommendations on Corporate Governance.

No, Novo Holdings does not invest on behalf of, or with a primary objective to benefit, Novo Nordisk or Novonesis. Novo Holdings’ primary objective is to secure a satisfactory long-term financial return for the benefit of the Novo Nordisk Foundation.

Given the Foundation’s heritage in healthcare, Novo Holdings’ investments are heavily focused on life science companies. It invests in almost all life science segments, including pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, medical technology, healthcare services, and industrial biosolutions. The portfolio of more than 180 companies includes private and publicly held companies at all stages of development from start-ups to mature enterprises. Importantly, the portfolio also includes capital investments.

Novo Holdings’ global investment portfolio of life science investments is managed by a team of experienced investment professionals who run their investments entirely independently from Novo Nordisk and Novonesis.