Hello, fellow financiers,
This week’s roundup carries the weight of capital: big pharma freezes billions in UK projects amid drug-pricing rows, Roche splashes $3.5B on a MASH contender, psoriasis treatments edge forward with new data, and a stem cell transplant shows promise in repairing stroke-damaged brains.
But don’t put your chequebooks away yet…there’s still cause for optimism!
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⏸️ Big pharma firms have paused nearly £2B in UK investments this year (The Guardian): Some of the biggest names in the business are hitting the brakes on the UK, with billions of pounds worth of life sciences investments scrapped or stalled this year amid a fierce drug-pricing standoff. Merck axed its £1.3B London hub, AstraZeneca froze its Cambridge expansion, and Eli Lilly shelved lab plans, blaming tight NHS spending and “intolerable” policy instability.
Our take: Pharma's vanishing billions translate into fewer trials for patients and fewer jobs for researchers, while Europe pockets the spoils. The government's pricing standoff with drugmakers has triggered an exodus, and once labs relocate, they rarely return. It’s a shame that policy inertia is steadily eroding the UK's science base just as global competition accelerates, leaving the NHS to foot the bill for political gridlock.
🤑 Roche acquires 89bio for US$3.5B (European Biotechnology Magazine): Roche is making moves to capture the MASH market with pegozafermin, a Phase III FGF21 analogue targeting advanced liver disease. The all-cash deal offers shareholders a juicy 52% premium and milestone sweeteners, as Roche aims to integrate pegozafermin with its cardiovascular, renal and metabolic franchise, and challenge rivals like Akero and Novo Nordisk in this multi-billion dollar race.
Our take: Liver disease is closely tied to the obesity epidemic, yet liver damage often goes undetected because symptoms present late. Pegozafermin gives MASH a double punch, combining both anti-fibrotic and anti-inflammatory effects. Deal-wise, Roche's calculation is that owning a MASH asset now beats licensing one later. In a crowded FGF21 field, success will hinge on demonstrating reliable late-stage efficacy.
🥊 J&J's IL-23 drug defeats reigning champ Sotyktu in Phase 3 psoriasis trial (Fierce Biotech): The oral peptide icotrokinra is jostling up psoriasis treatment by outperforming Bristol Myers Squibb’s Sotyktu in two Phase 3 trials, showing superior skin clearance and a strong safety profile. Poised for European and US approvals, icotrokinra promises a once-daily pill option that could capture billions in sales and transform systemic psoriasis therapy.
Our take: J&J timed this perfectly for the psoriasis market's maturation. As biologics lose patent protection and biosimilars flood in, an oral IL-23 inhibitor sidesteps the entire injectables pricing war. J&J could own a category while competitors fight over shrinking biologic margins. Whether this oral peptide approach scales to other inflammatory conditions – where injection fatigue is driving treatment abandonment – remains to be seen.
💀 Biotech’s VC slowdown forces young drugmakers to adapt in the ‘valley of death’ (PharmaVoice): Funding has plunged by 65% in Q2. Gone are the days of easy money and sprawling teams; now, even $50M barely gets a company to a viable drug candidate. VCs, once happy to join the party, now demand solid assets and clear commercial value before investing. Companies must now do more with less, and build a proven pipeline to survive.
Our take: The funding freeze is sorting the wheat from the chaff. Private startups, once buoyed by speculative investment and supersized rounds, now find themselves squeezed to prove real-world value – with skeletal teams and ever-thinner wallets. But leaner teams, though painful, may sharpen decision-making and cut dead weight. Provided companies adapt quickly enough, this harsher climate could help forge sturdier pipelines.
And finally…
🧠 New stem cell approach could repair stroke-damaged brains (Drug Target Review): A new stem cell therapy shows promise in repairing brain damage after ischemic strokes, extending recovery beyond current tight treatment windows. Researchers reprogrammed blood cells into neural stem cells that – when transplanted into mice – boosted neuron growth, reduced inflammation, and restored motor skills within weeks. This breakthrough could pave the way for lasting stroke recovery treatments in humans.
Our take: Turning patients' own blood into brain repair kits dodges the messy ethics and supply headaches that have dogged stem cell therapy for years. Every stroke patient becomes their own donor, which could finally make regenerative neurology scalable rather than a boutique medical curiosity. If translated clinically, this breakthrough offers hope for millions left with lasting disability.
Tune in 🎧
🫘 Extending the life of transplanted kidneys: Hear how Eledon Pharmaceuticals aims to prolong organ survival and reduce immunosuppression side effects, with potential in autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases.
💊 Drug Discovery in the Synapse – Derek Small: Learn about Syndeoo’s Boost platform and event-driven pharmacology – tackling depression and Alzheimer’s at the synapse.
🔬 AION Labs is building innovative biotechs with top pharma partners in Israel: CEO Mati Gill is harnessing AI and a venture‑studio model to create startups that capture big pharma’s investment and partnership interest.
Apply ✍️
🤝 Biotech Client Partner, IQVIA: Want to partner with C‑suite leaders? Steer regulatory strategy, clinical development, RWE, tech and analytics that bridge clients with IQVIA’s global teams to drive smooth delivery, growth and long‑term innovation.
💰 Executive Account Director, Business Development - Biopharma (Clinical Research), Thermo Fisher: Willing to shape global partnerships? Lead relationships with top biopharma companies, securing clinical deals and crafting proposals while mentoring rising talent and driving innovation at the frontlines of drug development.
🧪 Senior Director of Bioprocessing, Ecolabs: Ready to dive into bioprocessing? Align R&D with strategy and build a high‑performance team that’s ready to shape technology, growth, and cross‑functional leadership at the heart of Ecolabs’ life sciences sector.
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🧬 23-26.09 | 10th CAR-TCR Summit | Boston, USA: Celebrate 10 years of the CAR-TCR Summit as industry leaders convene to tackle today’s toughest cell-therapy challenges and accelerate next-gen breakthroughs, from discovery through manufacturing.
🧑⚕️ 30.09 | Sidley Healthcare Investment Conference 2025 | London, UK: Join Sidley’s one‑day London event uniting global pharma, biotech, healthcare, and investors to explore the deals, trends, and innovations shaping life sciences success.
🇦🇹 3-5.09 | BIO-Europe 2025 | Vienna, Austria: A major global biopharma partnering event, with over 5,800 life science professionals attending for networking and business development.
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