There’s a funding gap in medical research known as the “valley of death.”
When research begins, it’s funded by government grants and nonprofits. But drug research and development is very time-intensive. It typically takes around 10 years to bring a drug to market — and nine out of 10 drugs fail before that point. So the money dries up. And venture capitalists are often reluctant to sink money into such a high-risk sector.
This creates a hole in the market.
That’s where “BioBonds” come in. In May 2021, Representatives Bobby Rush (D-Illinois) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pennsylvania) introduced legislation that would create $30 billion worth of these government-backed bonds, which would help fund FDA-approved clinical trials.
In this episode of Startup Insider, Andy Gordon and Vin Narayanan explore how crowdfunding investors have been filling that gap long before BioBonds showed up… and how biopharmaceutical companies are navigating the path to market.
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