BioCentury
ARTICLE | Finance

Europe's Iceberg 2005

May 23, 2005 7:00 AM UTC

Europe's first generation of biotech companies failed to yield a critical mass of bellwethers with market caps above $1 billion. Now that the next generation is in the clinic, with at least 129 companies with lead compounds in clinical testing, the key question is whether Europe will succeed this time. The consensus is that this generation is better prepared than the first.

A number of factors argue in Europe's favor. According to BioCentury's third annual survey of Europe's financing needs, the funding needed to get clinical stage companies beyond Phase II is not overly large. And many companies at this stage look very different than Europe's first generation of biotechs: They are more product-focused and have better, more experienced management. ...