Navigating the Future: Challenges and Opportunities in Pharma Innovation and Investment – CPHI Barcelona 2023 Roundtable Report

In this comprehensive downloadable report, hear from a range of experts in finance and investment in the pharma industry on what investment trends will be shaping the future of the industry, in Catalonia, and the wider world. 

At CPHI Barcelona 2023, held in Spain this past October, we held a roundtable discussion for experts and thought leaders in the financial and investment landscape in pharma. The roundtable aimed to discuss changing global markets, in light of different global events over the past few years, and how investing is changing according to c-suite executives and financial experts. The group focused intently on the Catalan region, also known as the 'BioRegion' of Spain, as a hub for new developments in pharma and medicine and health, and for promising new companies and ventures. 

The roundtable was chaired by Mark Robbins, CEO of SugaROx, and in attendance was Bob Girton, Partner at Edgewater Capital Partners; Sara Secall, Partner at Inveready; Clara Campas, Managing Partner and Co-Founder of Asabys Partners; Xavier Wauthier, Partner at Walkiers & Wauthier; Nuria Martí Ras, Director of Innovation at Biocat; Nemo Rime, Vice President of Evercore; and Oriol Sans i Ballart, Senior Startups Manager for ACCIÓ.

Each of the experts give their views on Robbin's questions, and pose questions of their own to be dicsussed in the wider group. The roundtable was a valuable space for the experts to hear from different perspectives on each of the talking points, such as on what investors are looking for in start-ups and projects before getting involved, and more generally on the shifts in the pharma market in recent years. 

Industry challenges when investing in start-up companies

One block that companies are considering is the flutuating market at the minute, with lots of areas of pharma seeing unstable market conditions, this is making investors hesitant to make early-stage calls on whether to invest in some projects, of which are many, meaning the accessible funds are struggling to meet the demand. 

This also means that many venture capitals and investors are waiting for projects and companies to be more established, giving a proven track record and therefore a more secure investment opportunity. However start-ups need investment at early pre-seed phases to reach these points in the first place. 

What technologies are going to be developed in the next few years? 

The panel call out three main areas for technological development, these being digital, medical technology, and biotechnology. There are many fields that utilise and work into these technologies, each with huge scope for growth as there is still so much to learn. Digital technologies are attracting high valuations and good returns on investments. Medtech is slightly more niche, often focusing on single assets, which means that investors have to be more meticulous in their involvement, with constantly changing regulations something to bear in mind. The panel covers this in further depth in respect to biotechs and deeptech investing. 

This report covers the whole discussion, including opinions from the attendees and current figures on the pharma industry in the Catalan region and beyond. It summarises a capitavating and thought-provoking discussion, with numerous priceless takeaways for investors and start-up business leaders alike.