LONDON ¿ The European biotechnology industry is maturing, becoming more integrated and starting to repay investors¿ faith, a change expected to be reflected at the CEO and Investor Conference in London, sponsored by the UK BioIndustry Association (BIA), Nov. 27 and 28.

¿We are delivering products, not promises, and there is far more concentration on the market end of the business,¿ said Crispin Kirkman, CEO of the BIA. ¿One of the key things on display at this conference will be the Europeanization of the biotechnology industry and the emergence of a pan-European market.¿

Despite the current downturn in high-tech investment, biotechnology is in a strong position. ¿Given that everyone else is catching a cold, influenza or worse, biotechnology is holding up well, and that is because products are beginning to come through,¿ Kirkman said. Currently, a lot of venture money is unallocated.

¿There is no shortage of venture money for later-stage companies; however, we are still waiting for the IPO window to reopen,¿ he said.

More than 60 biotech CEOs will be making company presentations and discussing how they will convert recent advances in platform technologies, such as genomics, proteomics and drug discovery, into tangible products.

¿Of course. there will still be companies that fall by the wayside, but overall the industry is delivering,¿ said Kirkman. ¿ Nuala Moran