LONDON – Preparations for a no-deal Brexit are intensifying, with the government repeatedly saying the U.K. will leave on Oct. 31, and little sign that an agreement on an orderly exit will be reached by then. The U.K. Bioindustry Association (BIA) has stepped up its efforts to help members prepare, planning a series of events around the country and switching from monthly to weekly webinars, to provide up-to-date guidance in what is a fluid situation.
LONDON – There is an urgent need for changes to the health technology assessment (HTA) of new antibiotics, to incentivize investment and limit the development of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
LONDON – The industry has hit out at a proposal by the U.K.'s opposition Labour party to create a state-owned generic drugs company to supply the National Health Service and to force companies to cut the cost of expensive proprietary products.
DUBLIN – Versantis AG raised CHF16 million (US$16.1 million) in a series B round to progress clinical trials of a liposomal-based fluid in development for eliminating ammonia and other toxic metabolites from the circulation of patients in acute stages of liver failure who are undergoing peritoneal dialysis.
Croívalve, a Dublin-based startup supported by Enterprise Ireland that is developing a treatment for tricuspid regurgitation (TR), recently secured €4 million (US$4.4 million) in additional financing. The financing includes €2.5 million from the EU's Horizon 2020 SME Instrument grant and €1.5 million from Broadview Ventures and current investors Halo Business Angel Network Medtech and Irrus Syndicates, Atlantic Bridge University Fund and Sos Ventures. The funding will accelerate the development of the company's technology into first-in-human (FIH) studies.
LONDON – Kaia Health Software GmbH closed an $8 million funding round that it will use to accelerate U.S. commercialization of its digital health apps for managing musculoskeletal disorders and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
HONG KONG – Dreamed Diabetes Ltd., of Petah Tikva, Israel, has received both FDA clearance and the CE mark for an insulin dosing decision support software based on artificial intelligence (AI).
LONDON – Cmr Surgical Ltd. has again broken the record for a private financing round for a European med-tech company, raising £195 million (US$240 million) in a series C that will fund global commercialization of its portable robotic surgery system, Versius. Since the record-breaking series B in May 2018, when it raised $100 million, Cmr has set up offices in four continents and completed 30 first-in-human procedures. Currently, there are no commercial users, but the company now employs more than 400 people.