BIOSPAIN, the largest biotechnology event organised by a national bioindustry association in Europe, closed its XI edition in Barcelona on 28 September after three days of events with AseBio as organiser and with the collaboration of Biocat, Generalitat de Catalunya and Ajuntament de Barcelona, with the sponsorship of GENESIS Biomed as silver sponsor.

BIOSPAIN 2023 closed its 11th edition on 28 September in a fully face-to-face event, following the normalisation of the Covid-19 situation, with a record number of attendees. More than 2,000 attendees representing 968 organisations from 33 countries registered for BIOSPAIN. During the three days of the event, 5,000 one-to-one meetings were held, and more than 30 startup presentations were made to investors.

The congress has managed to position the biotechnology sector as the driving force behind the new health model and a key element in achieving strategic autonomy for Spain and Europe in areas such as the economy, health, sustainable food and the green industrial transition. This edition was held in Barcelona, a city which, together with the region of Catalonia, has also consolidated its position as one of the most competitive health innovation hubs, integrating 1,350 companies and bringing together 7% of the employed population in Catalonia.

GENESIS Biomed is not exempt from this reality and has been involved in the participation in this event by sponsoring the BIOSPAIN 2023 edition. The GENESIS Biomed team held a total of 67 one-to-one meetings, making 30 new contacts and meetings at the GENESIS Biomed stand. In the words of its partners and founders, Josep Lluís Falcó and Natalia de la Figuera “BIOSPAIN allows the creation of a sense of belonging to a leading sector that is already one of the engines of growth that will contribute to its perception from the social and productive fabric as something positive that crystallizes in policies that boost the sector“.

Our entire team has been present at BIOSPAIN 2023. Our CEO Josep Lluís Falcó, the COO Natalia de la Figuera, the Director of Business Development Jaume Ruíz and the Director of the Madrid Office Antonio Rodríguez have attended numerous one-to-one meetings on behalf of GENESIS Biomed. Moreover, the Senior Consultant Berta Tenas and the consultant Rafael Saenz de Tejada have attended as analysts of GENESIS Tech Transfer Boost (GTTB), an investment vehicle managed by GENESIS Biomed. The rest of the team, made up of Alonso, Andrea, Jordi, Blanca, Elena, Joan Carles, Marta, Mireia and Víctor, also attended at different times during the congress.

One of the most relevant events in which we took part was the organisation of the Round Table “When technology transfer is incorporated as a spin-off company”, moderated by our COO Natalia de la Figuera, which was a great success and was attended by more than 125 people. The Round Table was composed of relevant stakeholders from the sector, ranging from heads of Transfer Offices (Luis Villarrubia Grande, Coordinator DIH-bio, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid; Eduard Soler, Head of innovation at Institut d’Investigació i Innovació Parc Taulí; Javier Etxabe, Head of Industrial Property and Entrepreneurship Support Area-CSIC), to CEOs of companies (Laura Soucek, Peptomyc; Andreu Climent, Corify Care) and investors (Josep Lluís Sanfeliu, Partner at Asabys).

This Round Table highlighted, among other aspects, the role of transfer offices, the difficulty of finding CEO profiles to lead spin-offs, the maturity of projects as a key aspect to be considered by investors, the recently approved Science and Start-up Law and, finally, the lessons learned to turn our ecosystem into a benchmark in technology transfer and spinoff creation.

BIOSPAIN is undoubtedly the largest biotechnology event that takes place every two years in our country with the aim of promoting innovation and entrepreneurship in the biotechnology sector. This edition has been a success and we are sure that future editions will also be a success. GENESIS Biomed is looking forward to participating in the next one, SEE YOU SOON!