Biotech financing

To our clients
and friends
The poet and author Robert Louis Stevenson
famously advised: “Don’t judge each day by the
harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant.”
These are wise words, especially so in today’s
uncertain financial climate. Whether large or small,
public or private, biotech companies across the
industry have taken advantage of the capital that has
flowed freely these past two years. They have filled
(or refilled) their coffers with cash to drive future
R&D and business development agendas. As a result,
they are well-prepared for what increasingly looks
to be a period of protracted market volatility.
As we reflect on the financing highlights of 2015,
there is no question that companies find themselves
at a crossroad. How will access to capital affect
strategic business decisions, particularly the ability
to seed future innovations? In the future, will society
be able to reap the full gains of novel biopharma
products given current resource constraints?
This is not the first time our industry has found
itself at a crossroad. Thirty years ago this year,
we published our first ever biotechnology report,
Biotech 86: At the Crossroad. At the time, the
report’s authors pondered the fate of a very nascent
industry, wondering “whether the industry would
endure or exist for only a moment in time.”
Thanks to a combination of extraordinary scientific
progress, business model creativity and, yes, a little
luck, the biotech industry has not only survived,
but prospered.
It has also changed — and so have we. As our digital
capabilities evolve, we want to take advantage
of new tools that enable more timely delivery
of our content. Thus, we are moving away from
issuing a single large, annual report to the serial
publication of our insights. Over the course of the
next three months, we will release specific, concise
perspectives on not just biotech financing, but
also deals and financial performance. To put these
findings in context, we will also publish a “Year in
review” summary, highlighting the key messages
and their future implications.
Rest assured, via this new format, you will still be
able to access the key data you’ve come to expect
from Beyond borders. But we also hope to plant the
seeds for a bountiful harvest of even better biotech
analysis. Please visit our new digital home, Vital
Signs (ey.com/vitalsigns), and our Twitter feed
(@EY_LifeSciences) to access our latest content
and provide feedback.
Glen T. Giovanetti
Global Life Sciences Leader
2 Beyond borders 2016 — Biotech financing