TBI Bioscan Newsletter - August 2008
TBI Corporate Member Arius Research acquired by Pharma Giant
On July 23rd, 2008 Toronto-based biotechnology company and TBI (The Biotechnology Initiative) Corporate Member Arius Research was snapped up by Swiss-pharmaceutical giant Roche in what amounts to an all-cash $191 million transaction.
Arius President and CEO Dr. David Young is not only ecstatic with what the deal means to his company from both a business and science perspective but hopeful in what it means for Canadian Biotech. In what has increasingly become a turbulent marketplace here in Canada for biotech companies, Dr. Young believes that by having a company like Roche to back him, Arius will have an easier time dealing with these hurdles and should benefit from having Roche’s expertise and technologies at its disposal.
“We’ve been growing this company for nine years now and what we’ve realized is yes, we’ve created something real special here, but because of the challenges in the current capital market, that they don’t see the value of our company so much as some of the pharma partners do, this deal was exactly what we were looking for,” stated Dr. Young.
Established in 1999, Arius has developed an antibody platform called
FunctionFIRST ™. The company uses this technology platform to assist in selecting those antibodies that have anticancer abilities. The platform is also designed to rapidly identify antibodies to fight other diseases. The agreement gives Roche access to this platform but more importantly gives Arius what it needs to continue to move forward.
“We’ve basically taken a $30 million investment and turned it into $191 million enterprise. From a science standpoint we have found in essence a place where we can develop the technology and the products to really get them into the clinic for patients. Roche is a major player in cancer therapeutics and that’s very important for us because we can truly benefit from the experience they have in developing cancer drugs and in developing cancer antibodies,” he said adding that Roche’s capabilities in manufacturing and commercialization will offer Arius the ideal opportunity to realize the full potential of its approach and pipeline of candidate drugs.
Another appealing aspect of the deal states Dr. Young, is that the Arius research facility will be maintained as a separate innovation site with the same management ensuring that jobs will stay in Ontario while opening the door to the possibility that more jobs could be created in Ontario in the future.
“That’s what happens with the Roche model. The sites continue to run independently, they retain their own culture and basically remain more or less the same after the acquisition as they were before. This is one thing Roche has been brilliant at is keeping that culture intact, keeping the company they’ve taken over as it was before and in doing so they allow it to continue to be productive and innovative.”
On a larger scale, Dr. Young believes the deal is not only a huge achievement for Arius, but should also prove beneficial to the Canadian biotech sector in general, something that he feels is important as both a member of the TBI Board of Directors and BIOTECanada.
“This deal is a sign that the great work being done here by Canadian companies is not going unnoticed by the big players in this industry. Roche is known as a real smart acquirer and by smart acquirer I mean they’re excellent in their science and excellent in managing it. At the same time it shines a light here for investors to see, showing there that there is indeed money to be made in biotech.”
The deal itself originated from a business round held in Canada that Roche did in 2006, where Roche spent a day in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal talking to numerous Canadian companies about partnership opportunities. Arius was chosen out of this process from over 80 companies.
Dr. Young found the entire process unique but at the same time he believes it is a prime example of why Roche is where it is today.
“What it meant was they recognized and saw the value in innovation in Canada and here in Ontario as well. I don’t think there’s been many other pharma companies that have done equivalent things, never with a full on pharma partnering machine at least, to come in and scour the landscape and I think that to Roche’s credit they were able to do that.”
When asked if he foresees similar deals for falling in the laps of other local biotech companies in the future, Dr. Young stated he does think it is possible.
“Whether we’re seen as being the first stop on the pharma shopping tour or not, I think it requires some more work on the part of all levels of government as well as our local industry associations like TBI, in order to make deals like this happen more often.”
Up Coming Events
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The Biotechnology Initiative 'Mix and Match' Event
Hosted by AstraZeneca. This evening event will provide an opportunity for people from a variety of organizations and disciplines within the life sciences industry to informally connect and network. To register click here
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4th Annual TBI From Research To Revenue IV
Mississauga Living Arts Centre
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News
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Premier's Catalyst Awards: Call for entries
The Premier's Catalyst Awards for excellence and leadership in innovation are open for nominations.
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The Biotechnology Initiative closes another successful breakfast series season
The popular Members Marathon breakfast meeting in June provided an opportunity for six member companies to tell their successful business stories. Attendance at morning meeting was high, with more than 90 attendees, a very high turnout considering that many TBI members and board members were away at BIO in San Diego, CA.
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TBI Pub Night
On May 8 members of The Biotechnology Initiative and friends got together to finish off BioFinance in fine style gathering at the Mill Street Brewpub in Toronto for TBI pub night.
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Save The Date
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TBI September Breakfast
Network Breakfast Meeting
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National Biotechnology Week 2008 - Sept. 19-26
Events are taking place across Canada throughout the fifth annual NBW, a week in celebration of biotechnology excellence in Canada. Visit www.imagenenation.ca for a full national calendar of events.
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Industry Events
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ARCHITECTS OF ALLIANCES 2008 - Fundamentals of North American Healthcare Licensing
Issues and Opportunities in Due Diligence Reviews: A Business Development Course
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Click here to view more events
www.ontbi.org/Events
CONTACT US
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