For the first time since August, the volume of clinical data has dipped, with 388 items of phase I, II and III data in November, a 4% decrease compared with the prior month. Again, 17% of the entries during the month are focused on vaccines and therapeutics to fight the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The same percentage held true in October. The pandemic accounted for 16% of the clinical data in September, 15% in August and 16% in July.
If there are three takeaways from this year’s dealmaking efforts, they appear to be record-setting partnerships, lackluster M&As, and massive amounts of research funding via the U.S. government.
More than a third of the money raised through biopharma financings in 2020 was raised by companies developing either a therapeutic or a vaccine for COVID-19, yet completely wiping away those totals still leaves the year with $76.8 billion, a full 12% more than the next highest year.
The aging portfolios of drug companies and the emergence of China as it moves to develop more innovative therapies are two signposts from an industry in flux, according to the newly released 2020 Centre for Medicines Research (CMR) International Pharmaceutical R&D Factbook.
The number of FDA approvals tracked by BioWorld have continued their steady incline, with a total of 129 logged through July, placing 2020 at a five-year high.
While the volume of clinical data in July dipped below previous pandemic months, the amount of news focused on therapeutics or vaccines for COVID-19 is climbing, representing about 16% of BioWorld’s database entries during the month.
As the money keeps rolling in, 2020 is certainly a year for the biopharma record books. With a total of $81.26 billion raised through Aug. 6, it is a standout year in every type of financing, hitting all kinds of record highs.
The top two biggest money biopharma deals in 2020 occurred in June, putting the month ahead of all other months for the year in terms of deal values and volumes.
Although the FDA suggested in May that it might have trouble meeting PDUFA dates due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 30 approvals of biologics and drugs handed down in June 2020 is the highest number for a single month in the past five years.
As society continues to re-open and biopharma companies move back toward a business-as-usual approach, the number of clinical trials affected by the COVID-19 pandemic has plummeted with only 12 reporting delays or disruptions in the month of June. This compares to 171 in April and 71 in May.
