FOR A PAN-EUROPEAN VISION OF BIOTECHNOLOGY : Biotech Finances

Eco Note by H. ELLA

FOR A PAN-EUROPEAN VISION OF BIOTECHNOLOGY

The crisis in the financial world continues to cause collateral damage. After having been ahead in the race for a long time, biotechnology in Great Britain is losing ground and the rest of the squad is catching up. Various alarms had been sounded since 2007, when companies such as Vernalis or CeNes collapsed. Unfortunately 2008 has proved to be a poor year too. This situation has pushed Sir Chris Evans, chairman of investment fund Excalibur, to appeal to the English government. He requested the creation of two funds of £500 million each to compensate for the market's inability to finance English biotechnology companies appropriately.

Today it's France's turn to be hit, as Philippe Pouletty, CEO of France Biotech (1), sounds the alarm and demands state intervention. Investments in biotechnology businesses fell by 79% in 2008, and that's while we were still in the preliminary stage of the financial crisis. Furthermore France Biotech asks for a true re-launch plan from the government for Young Innovative Enterprises (YIE) by doubling the budget for OSEO, increasing the qualifying status for the YIE to 15 years, and the re-direction of life insurance, retirement and savings funds towards those small growing businesses that are the companies of tomorrow.

While this crisis is rearranging supremacies and strategies , we have to reject local solutions and patching up attempts, and face up to the problems with a fresh vision. We should work towards a pan-European vision of biotechnology, which would start giving us truly competitive tools such as a European Small Business Agency, a uniform procedure for patent registrations and investment regulations.