Biotechnology

Biotech is set for a geopolitical stress test

12 Jan 2022

The sector has been immune to U.S.-China tensions that sickened cross-border tech investments; in fact giants like $27 bln cancer treatment specialist BeiGene are thriving thanks to global tie-ups. Decoupling looks unlikely, but political risks are rising fast.

Moderna’s boosted valuation has Tesla-like spin

5 Jan 2022

Its Covid-19 vaccine is one of the world’s biggest medical products, yet that doesn't justify even half of Moderna’s $94 bln market value. Like Elon Musk’s $1.2 trln carmaker, the company is now a bet on dominating markets yet to exist. That suggests a volatile future for investors.

Data hunters will be Big Pharma’s next prey

20 Dec 2021

Drugmakers such as AstraZeneca spend $160 bln annually trying to unearth new treatments for diseases like cancer. The winners will be those who can source and analyse data quickly. That makes artificial intelligence experts like Relay Therapeutics and Exscientia targets.

Shanghai’s tech board gets welcome IPO flop

16 Dec 2021

The biggest listing on the overheated STAR market this year bombed as shares of biotech giant BeiGene fell 16% on their debut. That finally adds risk to a once-safe bet on triple-digit first-day pops. Regulators fretting about the speculative stock mania can relax a bit.

Cancer biotech’s triple listing has singular risk

13 Dec 2021

Beigene is raising $3.3 bln on Shanghai’s STAR market, making it the first company to trade there and in New York and Hong Kong. That suits its ambition to be seen as a global business and gives it enviable funding options. But its listing largesse is at the mercy of geopolitics.

CSL’s Swiss drug punt looks like a bad trip

2 Dec 2021

The $99 bln Aussie jab maker is in talks to buy iron-deficiency specialist Vifor for around $7 bln. CEO Paul Perreault has a track record of strong growth and winning M&A. The prospect of subpar returns and a looming patent expiry suggest his golden touch is losing its lustre.

Covid testers’ messy union would lure lab crashers

3 Nov 2021

German diagnostic group Qiagen and French peer BioMerieux may merge, Bloomberg says. A $28 bln deal would allow both companies to offer more products and better cope with the end of the pandemic boom. But few synergies and integration risks open the door to other predators.

Chinese IPOs return to New York with a whimper

2 Nov 2021

LianBio, the first Chinese company to float in the city since Didi’s catastrophic listing, fell 14% on its debut. It touts a Cayman Islands domicile and U.S. backers but most of its business is in the People's Republic. Investors who once loved such hybrids distrust them now.

Capital Calls: Klarna, French vaccine, Philips

18 Oct 2021

Concise views on global finance: The $46 bln Swedish buy-now-pay-later company tries to outrun Britain’s financial watchdogs; Valneva’s Covid-19 shot may prove better than the UK’s home-grown version; the industrial giant sees light at the end of the supply-chain tunnel.

Capital Calls: Real estate distress is tricky call

15 Oct 2021

Concise views on global finance: Barry Sternlicht’s Starwood Capital has raised a $10 bln fund to buy struggling buildings. With the pandemic's long-term effects unclear, the key will be avoiding those destined to remain empty.

Belgian biotech casualty defies Darwinian logic

15 Oct 2021

Galapagos has few drugs, a departing CEO and is worth just 3.1 bln euros, less than the cash on its books. It should be a takeover candidate, but the influence of key investor Gilead is a complication. It’s a cautionary tale of the challenges of drug discovery and creative M&A.

Capital Calls: Biodiversity, Email, Gene IPO

30 Sep 2021

Concise views on global finance: Taskforce on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures gets a nature-based counterpart; Sweden’s Sinch clinches its fourth communication-software deal in seven months; a 40% bounce on Oxford Nanopore's market debut puts some life into London.

Illumina thumbs its nose at slowcoach trustbusters

24 Sep 2021

The gene sequencing firm closed a $7 bln deal without EU approval. Illumina is confident in approval, or at worst, forced divestment at a premium. Illumina may be right that antitrust moves slower than technology, but its insouciance isn’t necessarily great for shareholders.

Gene hunter IPO is missing link in British biotech

17 Sep 2021

DNA sequencer Oxford Nanopore is eyeing a UK float, worth perhaps $5 bln. Shunning the bigger U.S. market looks bold, but the company’s niche position in a hot sector will help. While that’s hard to repeat, a success would boost London’s appeal for other life science groups.

Today’s Theranos would have gone public via a SPAC

8 Sep 2021

Elizabeth Holmes’ blood-testing outfit touted novel technology and big future sales. Holmes, on trial, blurred lines between marketing and fraud. Trevor Milton, founder of electric-truck firm Nikola, now faces similar charges. A key difference: Nikola is already publicly traded.

Capital Calls: GM, Hugo Boss, NYT, Frontier tech

4 Aug 2021

Concise views on global finance: The U.S. automaker finds inflation cuts both ways; the German-listed fashion brand hopes to double sales by 2025; advertising is a bright spot for the New York Times; Zymergen vaporized 75% of its value under four months after a $3 bln IPO.

Sanofi M&A punt soothes France’s Covid-19 shame

3 Aug 2021

The $131 bln drugmaker bought U.S-listed Translate Bio for $3 bln. CEO Paul Hudson gets a leg up in hot mRNA technology, which trounced the French group’s traditional vaccines during the pandemic. Shareholder returns look distant, but the cost of standing still may be higher.

Capital Calls: Grill makers cook their IPOs rare

27 Jul 2021

Concise views on global finance: Weber and Traeger set conservative prices for their market debuts, leaving something on the table for new investors.

Capital Calls: Volvo, Moderna, Mediobanca

21 Jul 2021

Concise views on global finance: The Swedish automaker boosts its appeal ahead of a possible IPO by buying out its Chinese joint venture partner; joining the S&P 500 will cut both ways for the vaccine maker; another Italian tycoon ups his stake in the Italian investment bank.

Airport security fast-tracker jumps the IPO line

18 Jun 2021

Clear, the U.S. firm that allows people to cut security lines for $179 a year, wants to go public. With vaccine checks on the horizon and the U.S. government as a new client, it has a promising path to fly as a public company, so long as its valuation stays in the $2 bln range.