Switzerland The biggest pharma news from Switzerland, including the industry’s cautious reaction to a new free trade deal with India; the drop in Roche’s share prices; Novartis’ acquisiton of MorphoSys, and the licence agreement between EraCal Therapeutics and Novo Nordisk.   Swiss industry welcomes agreement with India, pharma more cautious (Le…

Portugal Diabetes is a rising threat to the Portuguese people, the country’s healthcare system, and its economy. Portugal’s National Diabetes Observatory observed that 1.1 million Portuguese people between the ages of 20 and 79.5 (out of a total population of just 10.3 million) were living with diabetes in 2021.   This…

Global Pharma is rushing to adopt AI-driven tools in the hope of revolutionizing everything from drug discovery to clinical trials, regulatory submissions, and marketing efforts. While AI is the technology du jour, Saskia Steinacker, senior VP, global head strategy and digital transformation at Bayer, argues that successful AI implementation within Pharma…

Portugal Novo Nordisk’s spectacular ascendancy in 2023 has meant that its country managers across the world have had to embrace scrutiny and press coverage like never before.   In its centenary year, the Danish firm’s new generation of obesity drugs supercharged revenues to around EUR 30 billion, a 30 percent hike…

France After offloading its consumer healthcare division in 2022 and in view of the gradual erosion of its top seller, Somatuline, Ipsen opted to aggressively seek external assets to enrich its pipeline. With an FDA green light for its 2017-acquired Onivyde and an expected approval for its Genfit-partnered therapy this year,…

Global Susanne Schaffert’s over 20-year stint at Novartis culminated with her presidency of the Swiss giant’s global oncology division, but when the company underwent a major restructure in 2022, she found herself out of a job.  Now, after joining the boards of several biotechs, including Galapagos, Schaffert returns to big pharma,…

France France is the third most significant clinical research destination in Europe, participating in 50 percent of the trials initiated across the continent. While favourable government policies and unique strengths such as the National Health Data System contribute to France’s competitiveness, obstacles to further growth remain. In conversation with PharmaBoardroom, Hubert…

Portugal While not a major player in clinical trials at the European level, Portugal has untapped potential in this field, leveraging a first pioneering centre in Braga, the country’s strong scientific community, a growing openness to collaboration with industry, and access to a European patient database. Considering the remarkable progress that…

Europe Rainer Westermann of venture capitalist coalition Life Sciences Acceleration Alliance reviews the potential impact of the EU’s general pharmaceutical legislation on the investment climate for the EU life sciences sector. Building on his insights from last year, Westermann urges stakeholders to seize the opportunity caused by a delay in the…

Switzerland For the Swiss Agency for Therapeutic Products (Swissmedic), one of the world’s leading regulatory authorities, 2023 was an important year. Not only did the agency gain recognition from the World Health Organisation (WHO), Swissmedic also saw a Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) agreement between Switzerland and the US FDA come into…

CEE Some of the biggest stories coming out of the Central and Eastern European (CEE) region’s pharma industry, including the European Bank’s EUR 25 million investment in Pelion Group; the amendments to Poland’s drug reimbursement act; Pfizer’s legal proceedings against Hungary, Poland and Romania, and Egis Pharma’s expansion beyond Hungary.  …

Europe Obesity is pharma’s new El Dorado. Following the spectacular market success and sky-high sales projections of next-generation obesity treatments, many actors – both large and small – are looking to carve out a slice of this huge growth market. Those who made a bet on obesity years in advance are…