- Steady increase in biotechnology companies
- Stable: 44,000 employees in the Bavarian biopharma sector
- 14 new companies, settlement of US vaccine manufacturer Moderna
- Oncology remains most important indication in drug development
- Financing of numerous companies amounting to almost 400 million euros
- Review of successful 25 years of BioM and Munich Biotech Cluster
In its new report Biotech in Bavaria 2021/22, BioM Biotech Cluster Development GmbH has analyzed the developments and achievements of the Bavarian biotechnology sector. The report shows a steady increase in small and medium-sized biotechnology companies, especially in the field of therapeutics development, a stable employment high, and continued strong start-up dynamics. In drug development, oncology continues to dominate, followed by autoimmune diseases. Numerous companies were able to raise new capital in the single and double-digit million range (totaling almost 400 million euros). The establishment of 13 new biotech companies and the settlement of US vaccine manufacturer Moderna confirm Bavaria as an important biotechnology location with global competitiveness.
Employment high
Together, the pharmaceutical, biotech and other companies assigned to the sector employ around 44,000 people in Bavaria with a slight shift from the pharmaceutical sector to biotech and other companies assigned to the sector. With a total of 22,000 employees, the 289 (+ 5%) biotech companies are the most important employers in the sector. This represents an increase of 1,000 employees compared to the previous year. International companies employed a total of 15,000 people at their sites (+ 7%), while small and medium-sized Bavarian biotech companies remained stable in terms of employment.
Strong start-up momentum continues
Bavaria is particularly characterized by its start-up-friendly ecosystem. In 2021, a total of 13 new companies were recorded, in addition to a new settlement of the American vaccine manufacturer Moderna in Munich. In the region, founders find a strong network of supporting organizations. BioM, for example, has also been able to help a large number of entrepreneurs to successful start-ups with the virtual incubator inQlab.
Oncology remains most important indication in drug development
The Bavarian biotech landscape is traditionally strongly characterized by drug developers. These are long-term research and development projects that follow a lengthy process from the initial identification of a drug candidate through preclinical and clinical studies to approval. The Bavarian industry has an impressive pipeline of projects that are in the preclinical phase (41) or even in the clinical phase (118). A total of 37 products are currently in clinical phase I, 53 in phase II and 28 in phase III. As in previous years, cancer therapeutics account for the largest share of compounds in clinical development with a total of 56 projects, followed by therapeutics for autoimmune diseases with 14 projects. As is the case throughout Germany, the product pipeline in Bavaria is dominated by biopharmaceuticals and here by the active ingredient group of recombinant antibodies.
The impact of the global coronavirus pandemic is also becoming apparent, with many therapeutics and diagnostics companies converting or expanding their programs to combat COVID-19. University research groups have contributed to a better understanding of the coronavirus and its properties through their work, providing valuable groundwork for future developments.
Financing climate, deals and collaborations
In economic terms, the year 2021 was still dominated by the global pandemic. However, the approval of various vaccines and the resulting tailwind for the industry certainly had a positive effect. Bavarian companies presented very encouraging business figures last year, and numerous financing rounds were again successfully concluded. In particular, several follow-up financings on a substantial scale clearly show that many of the companies are on a promising path to commercially viable products. Numerous companies were able to raise new capital in the single and double-digit million range. In total, Bavarian companies were able to raise almost 400 million in capital last year. This continues the positive trend of recent years, in which companies have recently been able to achieve record figures.
In 2021, there was a strong desire for collaborations between biotechnology companies. The extent of these collaborations varied widely, from exchanging technologies, licensing provision of research and production capacities to billion-dollar acquisitions.
Bavaria's clout against COVID-19
Biotechnology is at the forefront of the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. From day one, numerous Bavarian companies and research teams have been driving innovative research in the development of test systems, vaccine candidates and drugs - with many positive results. In addition to the successful development of a wide variety of test systems, there is a broad spectrum of excellent approaches to COVID-19 therapeutics in Bavaria. Twenty-two outstanding Bavarian therapeutic concepts were submitted as part of the 50 million euros BayTherapie2020 program. A total of five companies received funding.
Biotech in Bavaria - A quarter century of success: 25 years of BioM and Munich Biotech Cluster
The overall development of the industry since its foundation is shown by the review of the success story "25 years of BioM and Munich Biotech Cluster". With the support of the Biotech Cluster Management Organization, the life science region has developed into one of the most successful biotech clusters in Europe. The Bavarian Biotech Report highlights this success story and other topics in interviews with various players and their perspectives on the industry.
BioM activities and company profiles
It also shows BioM's activities on digitization in medicine and internationalization in Bavaria. As usual, the report is supplemented by the current and constantly growing company directory with profiles and contact details.
You can find the Bavarian Biotech Report 2020/21 as an ePaper or as a pdf for download or at: www.bio-m.org/zahlen-und-fakten/publikationen. A print version is available via BioM.
About the Bavarian Biotech Report:
As the network organization of the biotechnology industry in Munich and Bavaria, BioM annually compiles the Bavarian Biotech Report on the development of the Bavarian biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry on behalf of the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs. The report includes current industry figures, trends and selected examples of innovative strength from science and entrepreneurship.