Biotechnology of the Future summer school

Print 09 August 2012

Anton Gopka, the Managing Director of Team Drive andVice President of RusnanoMedInvest  recently attended theBiotechnology of the Future summer school as a guest speaker and addressed the community of young researchers there on how best to promote their ideas in the venture capital market.

The Biotechnology of the Future summer school is the first Russian summer forum event  for life sciences students and postgraduates devoted to the latest burning issues, concepts and ideas in the biotech and pharmaceutical industries, and addresses optimal methods of commercialization thereof.

The school was attended by well-known professors and successful young scientists, entrepreneurs and corporate professionals - all people who every day promote the biotechnology industry. They shared their knowledge and experience with graduate students, postgraduates in specialties related to biotechnology (biochemistry, biophysics, molecular biology, etc.) and economics.

In his keynote speech, Anton Gopka told the future developers of new technologies and products how the Life Sciences venture market is organizedin the world and in Russia, how "owners of ideas" should properly promote their inventions and find funding for them at all stages of development, as well as addressing which critical success factors should  be taken into account in project design and in communicating with and pitching to potential seed capital and other investors.

As part of his address, Anton also presented the newly created RusnanoMedInvest life sciences venture fund to the audience. RusnanoMedInvest, created as a joint venture in March 2012, between Rusnano of Russia and Domain Associates, one of the largest and most successful US life sciences venture capital firms,  is Russia’s and Eastern Europe’s largest fund of venture investments in innovative developments in the field of pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, targeted specifically at innovative,  cutting-edge technology investment opportunities in the pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and life sciences areas"I hope that each of the students in the school will learn something useful for their further studies and work, for implementation of their ideas and research plans, - A. Gopka said. The guys asked extremely competent and fundamental questions. I would like to believe that after a while I meet some of them already as authors of innovative ideas ready to turn to us for venture support".

An extract from Anton’s  speech "...Globally, thelargest anmd most liquid life sciences venture capital funding market is  the U.S., all other markets around the world are significantly smaller by comparison. In Russia, according to Dow Jones, the value of the venture financing market for all industries, including life sciences is only $ 2 billion; according to other sources, this estimated market value is somewhat higher - up to $ 4 billion, but in any case it is very small. But at the same time, one must take into account that the life sciences venture market, and the venture funding market  in Russia is developing, and developing rapidly, but from a very small base..

In the U.S., the primary sectors of venture funding activity are   are ICT (information and communications technologies), followed by  pharmaceuticals  and CleanTech. Over $ 8 billion of venture funds have been invested in Life Sciences in the U.S. for the recent 3 years. In Russia, in  the same period, according to the Russian Association of Venture Investors, only $ 107 million were invested, of which $ 16 million - in 2011. RusnanoMedInvest has potential funds of $US 380 million available for life sciences venture investments, which will enable us to become one of the key players in this market in Russia.

The principal objective of this joint fund is to promote the formation of a sustainable, liquid and thriving venture capital market in the area of Life Sciences in Russia, and thereby facilitate the emergence of high-tech innovative pharmaceutical products in our country".

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