If you ask founders what determines whether they raise capital, most will give you the same answer: great science, compelling clinical data, a large market opportunity and a sensible valuation. For a long time, I would have given exactly the same answer, but I no longer do. After years of working with biotechnology companies, I have come to believe that those factors determine whether a company deserves investment, but they do not necessarily determine whether it gets the opportunity to be evaluated in the first place. Here’s why.
Report: Europe’s biotech leaders see recovery, but investors remain the obstacle
Latest NewsExclusive European data from BIO-Europe’s inaugural C-suite survey, shared with European Biotechnology, shows a sector expecting better funding conditions while struggling with investor caution. Among 69 executives at European-headquartered companies, 84% identify investor risk aversion as biotech investment’s biggest constraint, even as 70% expect their company’s access to capital to improve over the next year.
Forbion raises record-breaking €2.3B to back 30 biotechs
Latest NewsDutch life sciences investor Forbion has raised €2.3 billion across two new funds to finance about 30 biotech companies, setting a fundraising record for the firm.
Sensible secures $47M to rethink mRNA manufacturing
Latest NewsOxford-based Sensible Biotechnologies has secured a $47 million (€42 million) financing package to scale a platform that makes mRNA in living cells, targeting manufacturing costs and unwanted immune activation that can limit its use in treatments beyond vaccines.
RougeTx launches with $58M to tackle rare bleeding disorder
Latest NewsDutch biotech RougeTx has launched with a $58 million (€52 million) series A to take its lead drug RTX-001 toward first-in-human testing in hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT). The round was co-led by BioGeneration Ventures, Angelini Ventures and Kurma Partners, with the European Investment Bank (EIB) participating through Angelini’s Aurea co-investment vehicle.
Genmab and AbbVie’s bispecific antibody halves progression-or-death risk in lymphoma trial
Latest NewsGenmab and AbbVie’s bispecific antibody epcoritamab, added to R-CHOP chemoimmunotherapy, cut the risk of progression or death by 51% in a Phase 3 trial in newly diagnosed diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL).
“AI biotech” is no longer a useful category for investors
Background, Latest NewsAI has transformed drug discovery, but the “AI biotech” label has become increasingly misleading. Kurma Partners proposes an investment framework that distinguishes three fundamentally different models — each building a different asset, creating value in a different way and requiring a different investment lens.
WhiteLab secures $26M to expand AI-designed gene delivery assets
Latest NewsFrance’s WhiteLab Genomics has raised $26 million (€23 million) in Series B financing to expand experimental validation of its AI-designed gene delivery technologies and build a portfolio of assets it can own and license.
Fundraising: Why relationships matter more than ever
Latest News, OpinionIf you ask founders what determines whether they raise capital, most will give you the same answer: great science, compelling clinical data, a large market opportunity and a sensible valuation. For a long time, I would have given exactly the same answer, but I no longer do. After years of working with biotechnology companies, I have come to believe that those factors determine whether a company deserves investment, but they do not necessarily determine whether it gets the opportunity to be evaluated in the first place. Here’s why.
CSL backs Swiss Alentis’ claudin-1 bet with up to $1.6bn deal
Latest NewsAustralian biopharma company CSL has entered an exclusive global partnership with Basel-based Alentis Therapeutics to co-develop and co-commercialize lixudebart, an investigational antibody targeting claudin-1. CSL will pay Alentis $355 million upfront and the Swiss biotech is eligible for up to another $1.2 billion in commercial milestone payments. Once the drug reaches the market, global profits will be split 55% to CSL and 45% to Alentis. What is the deal all about?
Genmab’s Phase 2 data strengthens case for $1.8B ProfoundBio bet
Latest NewsGenmab’s rinatabart sesutecan (Rina-S) delivered durable responses in a Phase 2 trial in platinum-resistant ovarian cancer, providing encouraging validation for the centerpiece of its $1.8 billion acquisition of ProfoundBio.