AMR Action Fund Opens European Office
Swiss office positions Fund to pursue investment opportunities on a truly global scale
FEBRUARY 7, 2022, BOSTON, MA - The AMR Action Fund, the world’s largest public-private partnership investing in the development of new antibiotics, announced today the opening of its European office in Basel, Switzerland. The Fund, which has its U.S. headquarters in Boston, will operate out of FlexOffice’s Basel Messeturm building.
“Basel has long been a hub of biopharmaceutical innovation and establishing a presence within the city will allow the Fund to operate and identify promising investment opportunities on a truly global scale,” said Martin Heidecker, Chief Investment Officer of the AMR Action Fund. “Biotechs across Europe are pursuing novel approaches to drug-resistant infections, and we are eager to build a portfolio of companies that are developing antimicrobials that are clinically differentiated and have the potential to help patients who are suffering from infections for which few or no treatment options exist.”
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global threat. AMR-associated infections kill more than 1.2 million people around the world annually. If left unchecked, such infections are expected to kill as many as 10 million people annually by 2050 and could cost the world up to $100 trillion. Despite the urgent need for new and innovative treatments, antimicrobials are severely undervalued in the current market and financing options for clinical-stage companies are limited.
To address the growing threat of AMR and improve market conditions, the Fund will invest approximately $1 billion in clinical-stage biotech companies to bring two to four antimicrobials to market. The Fund will direct its investments toward companies that are developing treatments for priority drug-resistant pathogens identified by the World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“Expanding our presence to Basel is good for the Fund and good for the antibiotic research ecosystem at large,” said AMR Action Fund CEO Henry Skinner. “Europe has a fertile landscape of antibiotic R&D, and, importantly, policy makers across the EU and UK have committed to enacting necessary market reforms to sustain antibiotic innovation for the long term. Our strategic investments will help companies navigate the long and costly stages of clinical development so that they can deliver medications that benefit the whole of society.”
For more information contact Chris Sweeney: chris.sweeney@amractionfund.com
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About the AMR Action Fund
The AMR Action Fund is the world’s largest public-private partnership supporting the development of antibiotics, antifungals, and other antimicrobial treatments. The Fund will invest US$1 billion into clinical-stage biotech companies with the goal of bringing two to four new products to market. The concept of the AMR Action Fund was developed by the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations and its member biopharmaceutical companies, in collaboration with the World Health Organization, the European Investment Bank, and the Wellcome Trust. Investors in the AMR Action Fund include: Almirall; Amgen; Bayer; Boehringer Ingelheim; Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation; Chugai; Daiichi-Sankyo; Eisai; Eli Lilly and Company; the European Investment Bank (with the support of the European Commission under Horizon 2020, the 2014-2020 European Union research and innovation program); GlaxoSmithKline; Johnson & Johnson; LEO Pharma; Lundbeck; Menarini; Merck; Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany; Novartis; Novo Nordisk; Novo Nordisk Foundation; Pfizer; Roche; Shionogi; Takeda; Teva; UCB; and the Wellcome Trust.
