Three U.S. federal government agencies announced that their focus on consolidation in health care markets may soon ramp up, given concerns that consolidation may be affecting the cost and quality of patient care.

Equity investment in European biotechnology firms engaged in therapeutic discovery and development continued its downward slide during the third quarter. The total for the period, $1.106 billion, is down 39% on the second quarter of this year and down 41% on Q3 2021. The ongoing weakness of the public markets is the main driver of the trend. In Q3, listed firms raised little more than half of what they managed in Q1 of this year, while the IPO window remains firmly closed. At present, the sector is bumping along at investment levels last seen about five years ago.

Quoted European tech investor Gimv is setting up an independent life sciences arm and said it will increase both the size of its investments and the number of companies it backs.

U.S. private equity group Carlyle is extending its reach into biotech financing through the acquisition of London-based venture capital firm Abingworth, with which it is forming Launch Therapeutics, an operating company that will fund and manage late-stage clinical development of programs sourced from pharma and biotech companies. The move will enable further scaling of the clinical co-development model Abingworth first devised in 2009.

DUBLIN – Versant Ventures was one of a handful of investors to profit from Passage Bio Inc.’s recent upsized IPO. The Philadelphia-based gene therapy firm planned to raise $125 million initially but eventually hauled in $216 million by issuing 12 million shares, which it priced at $18 per share on Feb. 27. The IPO price valued Versant’s holding at $89 million. As well as participating in the IPO – the actual amount involved has not been disclosed – it invested $35 million across three private rounds, between September 2018 and August 2019, according to SEC filings.