The first quarter of 2023 has seen deal flow continue for the UK’s innovative life science and biotech companies at all stages of development, new data from the UK BioIndustry Association (BIA) and Clarivate shows. As global macro-economic headwinds, suppressed public markets and political uncertainty weighed on investor confidence, venture investment remained steady, with private UK biotechs securing £258 million across 20 deals, with an average deal size of £13 million. 

Notable deals in the three months leading to the end of February 2023 include:

• Pulmocide, a Manchester-based biotech developing medicines for respiratory diseases, raised £43 million in a Series C round
• Grey Wolf Therapeutics, an immuno-oncology company, raised £40 million in a Series B deal
• Akamis Bio, formally known as PsiOxus Therapeutics, raised £25 million to advance its gene therapy platform to treat cancer
• Prokarium secured £24.9 million to advance its novel bacteria-based cancer treatment
• Storm Therapeutics raised a £24.2 million Series B to continue its development of RNA-modifying enzymes as a treatment for solid tumours and leukaemias 

Source: Bioindustry.org 24/4/2023