A new joint survey from Bio Deutschland and |transkript magazine indicated that German biotech had an extremely successful 2017, with investments in the sector jumping 33.5% to reach approximately €674 million ($804.3 million), a record for the sector in the country. Most of the companies surveyed stated that they plan to increase their workforces and R&D expenditures in the coming year, with 50% of respondents expecting the industry to rise to even greater heights in 2018.

In 2017, German biotech companies listed on the stock exchange had a cumulative growth rate of 36%, raising €352 million ($437.6 million), a 36.4% increase. Jena-based biotech company InflaRx’s IPO provided a healthy €86 million ($106.9 million) boost to the sector. Venture capital firms invested €236 million ($293.4 million) in the sector, climbing 9%.

Biotech in Europe is on the rise, as over €5.09 billion ($6.3 billion) was raised in equity markets in 2017, a 54% spike. Nineteen companies carried out IPOs in 2017, with 15 listing on a single European stock exchange, while the remaining firms went public on the NASDAQ. Almost 50%, or €2.16 billion ($2.7 billion), of European biotech investments in 2017 came through Nasdaq.

Source: Bio Deutschland