On Wednesday 2nd, in Strasbourg’s PMC, will be addressed within BioFIT, the hot topic of Crowd-funding’s place in Drug Development.
Chaired by Cormac Sheridan, journalist at BioWorld today, Ireland, this session will confront the opinions of Mohammed Charki, Research and Development Partnerships Director of Sanofi, Ajan Reginald, Chief Executive of Cell Therapy, Daniel Olivier, CEO of Capital Cell, and Fabrice Beauchêne, CEO of My Pharma Company
Does it have a place or does it not ? This session is digging for more than a simple yes/no answer, chairman Cormac Sheridan described the session in these terms :
“To many of us, drug development is just about the last field one would associate with crowdfunding. Although it has become a useful adjunct to traditional methods of raising money for cultural and philanthropic initiatives and even for for-profit tech ventures, crowdfunding does not seem to fit the more formal fundraising culture of biotechnology. The capital requirements and the long-term investment horizons of drug development both militate against the buzzy ‘viral’ culture of crowdfunding. And yet, as a recent report from the Berlin-based research consultancy Biocom AG confirms, a growing number of European life sciences firms, particularly in France and the UK, has started to explore its possibilities. Biocom identified 42 campaigns (in biotech and medtech), which raised a combined €23 million over the past five years. Ten firms raised €1 million or more. Crowdfunding platforms with a specialist focus on life sciences have now started to emerge, and some are introducing new investment models. Does this represent a passing fad? Or the beginning of something big? How will stock exchanges (the ultimate crowdfunding platforms) engage with crowdfunding platforms? Which biotech companies should engage with them? And how? Join us to explore the potential for crowdfunding in drug development.”
What do you think ? Is there a place for crowd-funding in drug development ? Come share your opinion with our panel, we are already looking forward to attending this hot debate !
Discover the full speaker list here, and the conference program here
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