Biotechs Seek Partners at BIO-Europe Spring® as Alternative to Financial Markets
Carlsbad, USA, Zurich, Switzerland, and Milan, Italy, February 6, 2009: The intensity of partnering activities among biotech executives continues to increase in the wake of the collapse of traditional sources for financing, according to EBD Group, producer of the annual BIO-Europe Spring® partnering event set for March 16–18, 2009 at the Milano Convention Centre (MIC), Milan, Italy.
EBD Group reports in the current issue of partneringNEWS™ (www.partneringnews.com) that registrations for the event already exceed 800 companies from 40 countries worldwide, and more than 1,400 attendees are expected at the event.
"Despite the difficult economic climate we are seeing a strong increase in biotech companies interested in presenting to potential pharma partners at BIO-Europe Spring. There has also been an upsurge in the number of partnering meeting requests," said Carola Schropp, President of EBD Group. "With debilitated financial markets the fortunes of many biotech companies rest with developing and nurturing partnerships."
"BIO-Europe Spring is taking place at a critical time in the lives of many biotech firms, and we are happy to help provide a way for companies and the industry as a whole to keep the engines of innovation moving," Schropp added.
The Milan event follows on the heels of BIO-Europe 2008 in Mannheim where the number of partnering meetings scheduled by each participant spiked by 20% over the previous year, for a total of 10,000 meetings. BIO-Europe Spring 2009 in Milan is poised to continue this highly productive pace of partnering.
But it is not all doom and gloom for those seeking venture investment, and one participant who told partneringNEWS he will be networking intensively in Milan is Olivier Litzka, who manages the BioDiscovery portfolios for Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners (http://www.lcf-rothschild.fr/en/edrip/home.asp) (EdRIP) in Paris.
“It is well known that we have fresh money, so at BIO-Europe Spring in Milan my colleagues and I expect our agendas will be full,” said Litzka, adding he also looks forward to the accidental meetings that occur during the event’s evening receptions that can develop into opportunities.
EdRIP closed fundraising for the new BioDiscovery III in May 2008 for EUR 155 million just ahead of the tremblings in financial markets that led to the investor flight in September.
“There is no doubt that we had luck in the timing of this new fund,” Litzka told partneringNEWS. "I hope that the good funds that are out there interested in biotech resist the temptation to be harsh in this difficult moment and that they are prepared to support portfolio companies for perhaps longer than they had originally expected. That is what we intend to do, help our companies develop in a realistic way toward a future exit."
About EBD Group
EBD Group is the leading partnering firm for the global life science industry. Since 1993, biotech, pharma and medical device companies have leveraged EBD Group's partnering conferences, technology and services to identify business opportunities and develop strategic relationships essential to their success.
BD Group's conferences are run with the support of leading corporations and international trade associations and include:
- BIO-Europe® and BIO-Europe Spring®, Europe's largest life science partnering conferences, supported by the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO)
- BioPharm America™, the fastest growing partnering event in North America
- EuroMedtech™, EBD Group's partnering event for the innovative medical technology industry
- BioEquity Europe, the investor conference co-organized with BioCentury Publications and BIO
- ChinaBio® Partnering Forum, the first dedicated biotech/pharma partnering conference in China, co-produced with ChinaBio® LLC
- Partnering for Global Impact®, a new partnering conference providing an innovative forum to partner, identify and generate social and philanthropic investment and funding opportunities
- Biotech Showcase™, a unique forum in San Francisco for presenting to investors and business development executives, co-produced with Demy-Colton Life Science Advisors
EBD Group's sophisticated web-based partnering service, partneringONE®, is used as the partnering engine at numerous third-party events around the world, and partnering360® is the open online community of life science dealmakers that enhances partnering experiences at industry events.
Outside of the conference format, EBD Group's consultants provide hands-on assistance for firms seeking to in- or out-license products and technologies.
EBD Group has offices in the USA and Europe.
For more information please visit www.ebdgroup.com or contact:
Constantine Theodoropulos
EBD Group
+1 617 816 4637
ctheodoropulos@ebdgroup.com
