Finance

Ardena’s success leads to major €35 million investment for expansion in Belgium, Sweden and The Netherlands

Ghent, Belgium, 14 July 2021 – Ardena, a specialist pharmaceutical Contract Development and Manufacturing Organisation (CDMO), in partnership with GHO Capital, […] July 14, 2021 · Turnstone Communications

Azalea Vision closes € 8 million Series A to develop a smart contact lens for light sensitivity and ocular disorders

Azalea Vision develops autonomous smart solutions embedded inside a contact lens to improve the quality of life of people with […] July 8, 2021 · Turnstone Communications

Newton Biocapital invests in EditForce to support development of a unique DNA/RNA editing platform based on PPR protein technology

Brussels, Belgium / Tokyo, Japan – 1 July 2021 – Newton Biocapital (“Newton”), a life sciences investment fund active in […] July 1, 2021 · Turnstone Communications

Newton Biocapital invests in NeuVasQ: EUR 20 million Series A to develop unique blood-brain barrier therapy

– Newton together with public and private investment partners invests in NeuVasQ for the development of blood-brain barrier pharmaceuticals based […] June 22, 2021 · Turnstone Communications

Montis Biosciences Awarded VLAIO Grant to Expand its Pipeline of Novel Immune-Oncology Therapeutics

Leuven, Belgium, 14 June 2021 – Montis Biosciences, a Belgium-based biotech company focused on the development of novel immuno-oncology therapeutics targeting the […] June 14, 2021 · Turnstone Communications

Droia Ventures raises a new fund of EUR 220 million to target genetic diseases and expands leadership team with George Golumbeski

Brussels, Belgium, 11 May 2021 – Droia Ventures today announced the final closing of its third fund, having raised EUR […] May 11, 2021 · Turnstone Communications

Pulsify Medical closes second round Series A funding of EUR 6.35 million for wearable ultrasound heart monitor patch

Pulsify Medical is developing wearable ultrasound patches to monitor vital human organs such as the heart. The company has announced […] May 4, 2021 · Turnstone Communications

Belgian pharma industry among the EU’s strongest despite pandemic setbacks

How did the Belgian chemical and pharmaceutical sector fare during the first year of the pandemic? A recent report from […] April 28, 2021 · BioVox

To fund or not to fund: the psychology of investment decisions

Much has been written about the psychology of decision making and how venture capitalists choose which companies they want to […] April 28, 2021 · V-Bio Ventures

V-Bio Ventures invests in new start-up Protealis to uplift sustainable plant protein production

Ghent, Belgium, 8 April 2021 – Today V-Bio Ventures announces its investment in Ghent-based company Protealis, a new spin-off from […] April 8, 2021 · V-Bio Ventures

AgomAb’s journey of growth in regenerative medicine

Ghent-based AgomAb Therapeutics recently raised a Series B of $74 million, the largest round ever for a Belgian biotech in […] March 31, 2021 · V-Bio Ventures

Augustine Therapeutics developing new medicines for neuromuscular diseases

Augustine Therapeutics had a lot of announcements this month: the VIB spin-off just appointed Dr. Sylvain Celanire as CEO, strengthened […] March 31, 2021 · Turnstone Communications

Wallonia to invest in plant-based proteins as meat substitutes

The Walloon region is taking major steps towards becoming an important player in the business of plant-based proteins. In the […] March 31, 2021 · BioVox

Augustine Therapeutics awarded EUR 1.2 million VLAIO research grant to develop new medicines for neuromuscular diseases

Leuven, Belgium, 23 March 2021 – Augustine Therapeutics, a biotech spin-out company from VIB that focuses on the development of […] March 23, 2021 · Turnstone Communications

Lessons learned from COVID-19: how do we prepare for the next pandemic?

Although the crisis has not yet passed, COVID-19 has already taught us many valuable lessons. This past year has tested […] March 10, 2021 · Turnstone Communications

Rejuvenate Biomed Secures EUR 3.2 Million Series A Round to Advance Development of Healthy Aging Products

Heusden-Zolder, Belgium, 2 March 2021 – Rejuvenate Biomed NV (“Rejuvenate”), a biomedical company developing prescription drugs for age-related diseases, announces […] March 2, 2021 · Turnstone Communications

V-Bio Ventures: a fresh fund with a difference

V-Bio Ventures recently announced their second fund, with the first closing already totaling 78 million euros. As a VC fund […] February 24, 2021 · V-Bio Ventures

Newton Biocapital invests in Flemish start-up DeuterOncology

Brussels, Belgium, 24 February 2021 – Newton Biocapital I (“Newton Biocapital”), a life sciences investment fund active in Europe and […] February 24, 2021 · Turnstone Communications

Onco-immunology Company Pan Cancer T Launched as Spin-off from Erasmus Medical Center

– Dutch biotech company developing first-in-class T-cell Receptor (TCR) T-cell therapies – Seed investment by Swanbridge Capital and Van Herk […] February 8, 2021 · Turnstone Communications

V-Bio Ventures launches its second fund at EUR 78 million

– First Closing of V-Bio Fund 2 is announced at EUR 78 million – V-Bio Fund 2 will ensure seamless […] February 4, 2021 · V-Bio Ventures

The rapid evolution of Chinese biotech

The world is smaller today than it has ever been. With the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen the advantages of […] December 2, 2020 · Turnstone Communications

Belgian biotechs partnering with China: deals of 2020

In 2019, a delegation of Belgian biotechs participated in an economic mission to China led by H.R.H. Princess Astrid. Co-organized […] December 2, 2020 · Turnstone Communications

Long-term loyalty: A Belgian fund’s perspective on Chinese investors

Over the past few years, an increasing number of European biotechs have been signing deals with Chinese investors. The Chinese […] December 2, 2020 · Turnstone Communications

eTheRNA and China Grand Pharma enter a strategic collaboration in the Greater China Region focussed on eTheRNA’s proprietary mRNA development products and manufacturing capabilities

Niel, Belgium, 1 December 2020 – eTheRNA immunotherapies NV (“eTheRNA”) announced it has entered into a strategic cooperation and product […] December 2, 2020 · Turnstone Communications

Newton Biocapital I invests in Perseus Proteomics Inc. in Japan to develop therapeutic antibodies for the treatment of blood cancers

Brussels, Belgium / Tokyo, Japan – 1 December 2020 – Newton Biocapital I (“Newton”), a life sciences investment fund active in Europe […] December 1, 2020 · Turnstone Communications

A bridge from East to West: linking Chinese and European biotech

There are two main reasons why a European company might want to establish official links with a Chinese investor: funding, […] December 1, 2020 · Turnstone Communications

V-Bio Ventures invests in new start-up Animab in a EUR 3.4 million Seed Financing to improve health and performance of livestock animals

Gent, Belgium, 27 October 2020 – Today V-Bio Ventures announces its investment in Animab, a new venture spin-off from VIB, in a EUR […] October 27, 2020 · V-Bio Ventures

Belgium: the number one biotech country in Europe!

For the third year in a row, Belgium has been ranked the number one country in Europe for biotech! Belgium […] September 30, 2020 · BioVox

Countering COVID-19 with llama antibodies

Last month, VIB spin-off ExeVir Bio raised €23 million to advance a llama-derived antibody against COVID-19. The company is based […] August 31, 2020 · BioVox

Belgian stem cell company GST bought by German pharmaceutical giant

The German pharmaceutical giant Boehringer Ingelheim has acquired GST, a stem cell specialist based in Belgium. A part of the […] August 31, 2020 · Turnstone Communications

Biodol Therapeutics receives EUR 4.5 million to progress its novel pain medication in a Series A led by V-Bio Ventures

V-Bio Ventures, a leading Belgian life sciences VC, invests in Biodol Therapeutics, a French biotech specialized in next-generation chronic pain […] August 31, 2020 · V-Bio Ventures

Newton Biocapital I invests in J-Pharma Co., Ltd. in Japan focusing on drug development targeting L-type Amino Acid Transporter 1 (LAT1) for cancer and autoimmune diseases

Brussels, Belgium / Tokyo, Japan – 27 August 2020 – Newton Biocapital I (“Newton”), an investment company in life sciences, […] August 27, 2020 · Turnstone Communications

V-Bio invests into ExeVir Bio to accelerate development of new treatment conferring broad protection against Covid-19

Ghent, Belgium, 28 July 2020 – Today V-Bio Ventures announces its investment in a EUR 23 million Series A financing into ExeVir Bio. […] July 28, 2020 · V-Bio Ventures

Anacura, a Belgian biotech company, sells stem cell business to Boehringer Ingelheim

Ghent, Belgium, 27 July 2020 – GST, the stem cell specialist for horses and pets within the Anacura Group, has […] July 27, 2020 · Turnstone Communications

Building bigger for Belgium’s maturing biotech scene

Biotech is booming in Belgium. To support the evolving needs of this world-class ecosystem, the Mariën family initiated and are […] July 7, 2020 · Turnstone Communications

VIB: the driving force behind a booming biotech ecosystem

Since VIB was established, the world class research institute has been led by a duo of managing directors. As Johan […] July 7, 2020 · BioVox

Cell therapies: opportunities and challenges

This article was authored by Christina Takke from V-Bio Ventures. Recent activities in the cell therapy field have prompted many […] May 5, 2020 · V-Bio Ventures

Potential impact of the corona crisis on the life sciences industry

This article was authored by Christina Takke from V-Bio Ventures Over the past few months, every news headline has focused […] March 26, 2020 · V-Bio Ventures

Montis Biosciences launched with €8.4 million seed financing and a novel approach to immuno-oncology

Montis Biosciences announces its launch with €8,4 million in seed financing from an international investor syndicate to investigate interactions between perivascular macrophages [...] February 20, 2020 · Turnstone Communications

Predictions for Belgian Biotech in 2020

With the Belgian biotech landscape blooming, BioVox reached out to some of the investors in our network to see what their predictions are for the coming year. From trends to companies to keep an eye on, here’s their take on 2020! January 22, 2020 · BioVox

V-Bio Ventures invests in RootWave in a EUR 6.5 M Series A financing to develop and market electrical weed killing solutions

Today V-Bio Ventures announces its investment in RootWave, a pioneer in electrical weed killing solutions. RootWave secured ca. EUR 6.5m in a Series A investment round [...] January 20, 2020 · V-Bio Ventures

How business models shaped our current drug development trends

December 17, 2019 · V-Bio Ventures

V-Bio Ventures invests in Augustine Therapeutics, a VIB and KU Leuven spin-off to fight neuromuscular diseases

Ghent, Belgium, December 16 2019 – Today V-Bio Ventures announces its investment in Augustine Therapeutics, a new venture developing innovative […] December 16, 2019 · V-Bio Ventures

Magic mushrooms in modern medicine

This article was authored by Katja Rosenkranz from V-Bio Ventures. More than 75 years after the initial discovery of lysergic acid […] November 26, 2019 · V-Bio Ventures

Pulsify Medical to develop a wearable heart monitor patch

Pulsify Medical, a joint imec and KU Leuven spin-off, has closed a seed funding round of €2.6 million. The investment, […] October 24, 2019 · Turnstone Communications

Closing the gender gap in biotech funding: a follow-up study

This article was authored by Christina Takke from V-Bio Ventures. In this follow-up to a previous VC Views article, V-Bio […] September 24, 2019 · V-Bio Ventures

Galapagos-Gilead billion-dollar deal: beyond the numbers

Last month, Galapagos sealed a 5-billion-dollar deal with Gilead. Now that the dust has started to settle, we’re taking a […] August 27, 2019 · BioVox

The million-dollar question: How much do you charge for a lifesaving drug?

The newest generation of ground-breaking gene therapy drugs, Zolgensma and Zynteglo, come with eye-catching price tags [...] August 26, 2019 · V-Bio Ventures

How do we reduce the high cost of clinical trials?

Drug development is an exorbitantly expensive endeavor. A large expense factor for developing a new therapy is the high cost of conducting clinical trials. [...] July 18, 2019 · V-Bio Ventures

Confo Therapeutics and DyNAbind announce drug discovery collaboration to identify novel GPCR-modulating compounds

Ghent, Belgium, and Dresden, Germany – 3 July 2019 – Confo Therapeutics, an emerging drug discovery company, and DyNAbind GmbH […] July 3, 2019 · Turnstone Communications

Betting big on blood screens for early cancer detection

This article was authored by Ward Capoen from V-Bio Ventures. The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) just held their […] June 27, 2019 · V-Bio Ventures

OCTIMET Oncology tackling cancer with a new captain at the helm

In this article, V-Bio Ventures introduces one of their portfolio companies, OCTIMET. This Belgian oncology startup just added a new […] May 29, 2019 · V-Bio Ventures

Cultured meat, plant-based patties and bug burgers: VCs are backing protein alternatives

When it comes to food, our key sources of nutrition haven’t changed much in the last ten thousand years. Though hyped-up food trends and diets come and go, [...] April 16, 2019 · V-Bio Ventures

Closing the gender gap in biotech funding

Companies with a good gender balance consistently outperform those with only men in their management teams. [...] March 19, 2019 · V-Bio Ventures

Are we spending too much money on cancer drugs?

This article was authored by Ward Capoen from V-Bio Ventures. November is classically the month where immunotherapy takes center stage, […] January 22, 2019 · V-Bio Ventures

argenx signs billion-dollar deal with Janssen

Another Belgian biotech on the up and up: argenx just closed a billion-dollar deal with Janssen Pharmaceutica for their antibody […] December 4, 2018 · Turnstone Communications

Why start-ups can become mega companies in the pharma sector

In a previous BioVox article, we analyzed the steps needed for a life sciences start-up to turn into a fully […] November 20, 2018 · V-Bio Ventures

Are tech investments under threat by anti-science sentiments?

In biotech, company creation is usually preceded by scientific discoveries presenting solutions to existing problems. Because of this, early stage […] October 30, 2018 · V-Bio Ventures

Lessons in Herding Cats: Business Development for Life Sciences Companies

Business development challenges can make or break a company in any industry. For a life sciences company, overcoming the added […] October 16, 2018 · Janssen Pharmaceutica

Bringing clinical trials into the home

Lowering the costs of drug development is more important than ever; with the increasing pressure on drug pricing and billions […] October 2, 2018 · V-Bio Ventures

Galapagos and MorphoSys to receive up to EUR 850mil in deal with Novartis

Galapagos (Belgium) and MorphoSys (Germany) recently announced that they have entered into an exclusive global license agreement with Novartis. The […] July 31, 2018 · BioVox

Biotechs and subsidies - a fraught relationship

The ambition of any CEO heading a biotech start-up is to develop a new product and to reach patients quickly. […] July 23, 2018 · V-Bio Ventures

CD3 as co-creator of drugs with academia and pharma

The Center for Drug Design and Discovery (CD3), based in Leuven, bridges the gap between innovative biomedical research emerging from […] May 28, 2018 · Turnstone Communications

Acquisitions of Biotech companies: a good or a bad thing?

When on the 8th January 2018 the news travelled that Novo Nordisk made a €2.6bn bid for Belgium’s Ablynx, only […] May 14, 2018 · V-Bio Ventures

How to build a “European Amgen”

There are still very few large European biotech companies to compete with the Amgens and Gileads of the world. Only […] April 19, 2018 · V-Bio Ventures

Is innovation killing the pharmaceutical industry?

In the past few years, the speed at which new drugs have been coming to the market has accelerated significantly […] March 18, 2018 · V-Bio Ventures

After Ablynx, is an acquisition of Galapagos next?

The Gent biotech company Ablynx has been acquired by pharmaceutical giant Sanofi for 3.9 billion euros. The French Sanofi beat […] February 19, 2018 · BioVox

Rewind Therapeutics secures funding for Multiple Sclerosis research

Rewind Therapeutics, a privately held Belgian biotech company, completed a € 15.2 million Series A financing to develop novel re-myelinating […] January 11, 2018 · Turnstone Communications

New cures for hereditary diseases around the corner?

Hereditary diseases are caused by mutations or deletions in (single) genes that lead to either dysfunctional or inadequate levels of […] December 18, 2017 · V-Bio Ventures

Belgium vs Germany in the Life Sciences start-up championship

Germany is one of the leading industrial nations in the world and has 8x more inhabitants than Belgium. However, when […] November 20, 2017 · V-Bio Ventures

How Aphea.Bio managed to gather the funds to transcend from academia to industry

Aphea.Bio is an agriculture startup, originating from the VIB and flourishing underneath the wings of V-Bio Ventures. Steven Vandenabeele (CTO […] October 16, 2017 · V-Bio Ventures

The leap from academia to industry

The earlier in development, the greater the risk. It’s an unspoken law in biotech that makes valorizing promising academic projects […] September 11, 2017 · V-Bio Ventures

Strengthening communication in biotech companies

Many biotech management teams fail to reach out to investors in a clear and appealing way.

May 22, 2017 · V-Bio Ventures

Reversed Brexit: £250 million for Bart De Strooper's dementia research

The UK has pledged a budget of £250 million to the creation of the UK Dementia Research Institute (DRI). The […] April 17, 2017 · BioVox

Curing all diseases in the next 20 years: the new hype amongst billionaires?

Despite the initial intent of charitable foundations to be not-for-profit, some of them tend to morph into organizations with bigger aspirations.

April 17, 2017 · V-Bio Ventures

CMAST: Bringing ideas from a risky early stage to a viable healthcare solution

CMAST knows that much more than good science is needed to create innovative healthcare solutions that will have an impact […] April 14, 2017 · Turnstone Communications

Investing in European biotech faced with many challenges

Investing in biotech companies is a capital-intensive and risky business, and it’s no secret that more money and less risk-averse investors are available in the US than in Europe. To keep innovations, companies, and their economic benefits from being transferred to regions outside Europe, many national and international European initiatives are in place. The question remains whether this is sufficient to fundamentally improve Europe’s currently underfunded biotech ecosystem. The biotech investment specialists of V-Bio Ventures take us through Europe’s biotech investment landscape.

March 16, 2017 · V-Bio Ventures

Grail: A billion-dollar gamble?

Grail has vowed to change the field of cancer diagnostics via simple blood tests and ctDNA analysis. Their Big Data approach, in which the company will build an atlas of DNA found in the blood, convinced major investors, such as Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, of the technology’s potential. A whopping $1 billion was gathered in the company’s series B financing round. Yet, do Grail and its technology deserve this huge ticket?

March 15, 2017 · V-Bio Ventures