The top 50 healthcare companies’ corporate venturing units have predominantly invested in portfolio companies testing their products at the preclinical stage over the past decade.
Farhang Modaresi and Parhat Hebibul, master students in Finland-based Karolinska Institutet’s bioentrepreneurship programme, in a report commissioned by Stockholm Business Region (pictured) looked at more than 300 deals by the top 50 healthcare companies, of which nearly 60% had a corporate venturing unit.
Of the deals, 140 were at the preclinical development stage, with an average of $22.9m invested, followed by 39 investments at phase I, 34 at phase II and 13 at phase III, although the average amounts invested increased by stage.
But there was considerable divergence in strategy with drugs groups Roche, Takeda and Novartis regarded as most active over the past decade. Modaresi said: "Small companies in need of venture capital must analyze large pharmaceutical companies’ portfolios, become familiar with their focus and preferences and meet investors before they submit a proposal. Networking is probably more important than many people think."