Print“We are aiming to pave the way and demonstrate that innovative financial instruments such as risk sharing co-development funding can make a difference in boosting research and innovation in Europe and this is of utmost importance for the future of Europe.”
The European Investment Bank, the financing institution of the European Union, has entered into an agreement with Belgian pharmaceutical UCB, to provide “at-risk co-development funding” of up to $102 million (€75 million) for the development of selected UCB compounds. The bank will receive payments tied to the achievement of predefined milestones.
The agreement is the first of its kind between the European Investment Bank and a pharmaceutical company, an innovative partnership with shared risks and returns that gives UCB incentives to invest ambitiously in its most promising development programs. It is being undertaken under the new InnovFin ‘EU finance for Innovators’ program set up jointly by the European Commission and the European Investment Bank Group. The program is designed to improve access to risk finance for research and innovation projects in the European Union.
“We are aiming to pave the way and demonstrate that innovative financial instruments such as risk sharing co-development funding can make a difference in boosting research and innovation in Europe and this is of utmost importance for the future of Europe,” says
Pim van Ballekom, vice president of the European Investment Bank.
The UCB programs to be financed include potential breakthrough compounds at different stages of development that may help millions of patients. The partners will periodically review the stages of development and the milestones of the programs being accelerated by the co-development funding and the Bank will participate in the development of the programs.
“UCB’s strategy is to focus on bringing innovative medicines to people suffering from severe diseases in neurology and immunology,” says Roch Doliveux, CEO of UCB. “We’re happy that our cutting-edge research and innovation is yet again recognized by the EIB, and that they have chosen UCB as a first partner for their new “at risk co-development” approach. This will contribute to accelerate the development of several promising projects in UCB’s pipeline.”
The EIB/UCB agreement is the first of the InnovFin Large Projects program, part of the European Union’s recently launched Horizon 2020 initiative for funding research and innovation over the next seven years. InnovFin guarantees and loans are backed by funds set aside under Horizon 2020 and the European Investment Bank Group for such purposes, with plans to make available more than $32.5 billion (€24 billion) of financing for investments in research and innovation.
June 20, 2014
http://www.burrillreport.com/article-eib_and_ucb_partner_to_accelerate_drug_development_of_new_medicines.html
