BioCrossroads: Indiana life sciences companies raised $5.5B in 2023
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Indiana’s life sciences companies landed about $5.5 billion in capital and investments last year from all sources, down 19% from a year earlier.
That figure includes funds raised through venture capital, mergers and acquisitions, federal small-business awards and other sources, according to a report issued Monday by BioCrossroads, an Indianapolis-based group that promotes and invests in the state’s life sciences sector and tracks the funding.
“These investments represent a deep-seated belief in Indiana’s potential and act as a driving force for future breakthroughs,” the report said.
The report said it used information gathered from the Indiana Economic Development Corp., Pitchbook data, company press releases, the federal Small Business Innovation Research awards website and other public data.
The life sciences sector includes pharmaceutical, medical devices, orthopedics, and agricultural industries. Together, they have long been touted as major contributors to the state’s economy.
The breakdown for 2023 is as follows:
Venture capital: $287.5 million raised by 34 companies to help finance a wide array of technologies, from medical isotopes to stem-cell therapies. That’s down from $619.8 invested in 37 companies in 2022.
Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer awards: $8.2 million in funding awarded to 17 companies. Big winners were Kovina Therapeutics of Indianapolis ($909,657), Wik Devices of Zionsville ($889,695) and Biomineral Systems LLC of South Bend ($650,000). All told, that’s up from $5.3 million awarded to nine companies in 2022.
Public markets: $160.7 million raised by three companies (Acumen Pharmaceuticals, NeurAxis and Syra Health) on the stock market. That’s down from $269 million raised by two companies in 2022.
Mergers and acquisitions: Nearly $3.5 billion related to Indiana life science companies. Two big deals: Paragon Medical, a Princeton-based manufacturer of medical devices, was acquired by Ametek Inc., an industrial technology company based in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, for $1.9 billion; and Point Biopharma, an Indianapolis-based developer of cancer therapies, acquired by Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly and Co. for $1.4 billion. In all, M&A deals were up from $3.1 billion in 2022.
Capital raised to establish, expand or upgrade facilities: $1.5 billion by eight companies, adding nearly 750 new jobs. That’s down from $2.8 billion by 25 companies to add more than 3,000 new jobs.
Overall, Indiana’s life sciences sector contributed a “staggering $95 billion” to the state economy last year, the BioCrossroads report said.
That’s higher than the $77 billion contributed in 2022, when the sector saw record-breaking venture capital investments and companies raised billions of dollars to expand or upgrade facilities.
“Indiana stands as a vibrant epicenter of life sciences innovation, rivaling coastal powerhouses with a spirit of unique collaboration and excellence,” the report said.