Novo Nordisk Foundation
| Founded | 1989 in Denmark |
|---|---|
| Type | Fund |
| Headquarters | Hellerup, Denmark |
| Fields | Life-sciences, natural sciences, social sciences |
| Endowment | US$220 billion (Feb 2026) |
| Website | novonordiskfonden |
The Novo Nordisk Foundation (NNF) is a Danish enterprise foundation based in Hellerup, Denmark. Established in 1924, it supports research and other activities primarily in health, sustainability, and life sciences.
The foundation is the controlling shareholder of Novo Nordisk and Novonesis (formerly Novozymes A/S) through its investment arm, Novo Holdings. It holds a minority of the share capital in these companies but controls a majority of the voting rights. Income derived from these holdings constitutes the foundation’s primary source of funding.
The foundation is among the world’s largest charitable foundations by assets. In recent years, it has awarded billions of Danish kroner (DKK) annually in grants and investments to research institutions, organisations, and initiatives in Denmark and internationally.
As of February 2026, the foundation had a net worth of US$220bn), making it the wealthiest charitable foundation in the world. In 2025, the foundation awarded US$1.83bn) in grants.
From 2016 to 2022, the foundation distributed more than US$4.5bn in grants for research, innovation, treatment, education, humanitarian and social purposes.
While the main focus lies within biomedicine and biotechnology research, the Novo Nordisk Foundation also awards grants for research in general practice and family medicine, nursing and art history.