Novartis investing millions in next-generation biotherapeutics

Having recently announced that it is slashing its global workforce by around 8,000, and a plan for a new organizational structure and operating model in April of this year that is expected to result in savings of at least a billion dollars, Swiss pharma giant Novartis (NOVN: VX) has today revealed it is investing around $300 million in next-generation biotherapeutics.

This will bolster its capacity and capabilities for early technical development of biologics, the company stated. Spanning both drug substance and drug product development, the multi-year investment will be implemented across existing Novartis locations in Switzerland, Slovenia and Austria, strengthening the firm’s ability to deliver on the increasing growth and diversity of its early-stage biotherapeutics portfolio.

“Across the industry, biotherapeutics account for almost one-half of all recent new drug approvals and have enormous potential to address unmet need across a wide range of diseases,” said Reto Fischer, head of Technical Research Division, Global Drug Development (GDD), Novartis. “We are building the scientific environment necessary to bring these complex biologic compounds from the bench through development in an integrated, seamless, and rapid fashion. In doing so, we are supporting our broader ambition to enable faster development and focused prioritization across our global portfolio,” he noted.