Investing in life science: From Seed to Success 2024
Last week, investors and entrepreneurs gathered at the World Trade Center in Stockholm for our “Investing in Life Science: From Seed to Success” event co-hosted by Vator Securities. The event brought together leaders in the life science industry to explore the critical stages of investment, from early seed funding to growth and strategic expansion.
The day was filled with insightful presentations, thought-provoking panel discussions, and invaluable networking opportunities. Companies shared their growth stories while investors and business leaders engaged in vibrant discussions on making Swedish biotech globally attractive and nurturing early-stage innovation.
Attracting international capital
Key panels included one themed ”Unlocking Global Investment – A deep dive into making Swedish biotech appealing to international investors,” where we heard Ester Sklarsky, Principal at Sound Bioventures, sharing the venture capitalist perspective, Oskar Bosson, VP and Head of IR & Communication at BioArctic unfolding key components of their advancement at various development stages, and Kristofer Klerfalk, CEO of Life Science Invest speaking for the investor collective as head of the largest angel investor network in Sweden.
The discussion was moderated by Jenni Nordborg, currently Head of International Relations at Lif, and previously the Swedish government’s life science coordinator, where Nordborg was tasked to advance the Swedish Life Science industry’s global position.
Nurturing innovation
Another panel, ”Nurturing Innovation – A focus on early-stage investments that can drive groundbreaking medical advances”, did just that. It gave insights into how capital can nurture life science innovations and advance them toward the market. Thomas Gidlund, Head of Sales at Spotlight Stock Market, moderated this panel.
He dove deep on the topic with three distinct panelists: Linda Spahiu Elvesjö, Investment Manager at Karolinska Development, with extensive experience in early-stage venture investments; Christer Nordstedt, Chair of WntResearch and serial entrepreneur with a background in both big pharma and small biotech, with expertise from raising capital for multiple projects throughout his career; and Anders Hedlund, CEO and Co-founder of Nolsterby Invest, with core investments in medtech companies, at the growth stage, with precise clinical applications.
Investment strategies
We also learned about the key factors institutional investors consider when evaluating an investment case’s growth potential and what they do to support the desired development. What aspects are crucial for a company to become relevant for these investments?
Dawid Myslinski, Partner at Vator Securities specializing in equity capital markets, moderated this panel discussion named ”Scaling Up – Strategic Investments for Accelerating Growth and Facilitating Global Market Presence.” He was joined on stage by Karl Tobieson, CEO of Linc, a product-oriented life science investment firm; Karl-Fredrik Johannesson, founder of NV and a visionary investor; and Shamim Dadvar, an MD turned life science venture capitalist and now Medical Associate at HealthCap.
Company pitches
Moreover, the day presented a strong pitch line-up, including Abarceo Pharma, Annexin Pharmaceuticals, BioArctic, CYTO365, Elicera Therapeutics, ExpreS2ion Biotech, Initiator Pharma, IRLAB Therapeutics, Magle Chemoswed, PainDrainer, Prolight Diagnostics, Promimic, Spago Nanomedical, Thor Medical, Zerion Pharma, and Ziccum.
Thank you to all the speakers, panelists, and attendees who made this event successful! The conversations will undoubtedly shape life science investments in the region going forward.
For those who missed it, you can watch all the presentations and panels on our YouTube channel by following the link below.
