Title:OncoArendi Therapeutics as Platform-based Polish Biotech Company – A Case Study
Volume: 7
Issue: 1
Author(s): Marcin Szumowski*
Affiliation:
- OncoArendi Therapeutics SA, Zwirki i Wigury 101, 02-089 Warsaw,Poland
Keywords:
Oncology, inflammation, biotechnology, small molecules, Poland, OncoArendi.
Abstract: OncoArendi Therapeutics SA (OAT) has been founded in 2012 as USstyle
biotech operating in Poland. From the beginning, OAT has been focused on
first-in-class or best-in-class programs involving interactions with novel targets
with no clinical validation. The experienced group of founders thought that Poland
offered an abundance of young talent and non-dilutive financing from European
and national grants and subsidies, newly established research infrastructure and
relatively little competition, as the biotech sector was still in its infancy. With
strong proprietary IP, they thought, an experienced group of medicinal chemists
could launch a competitive small molecule discovery business. Furthermore, the net
cost of developing small molecules in Poland was several-fold lower than in the US
or in western European countries. Based on these competitive factors, one could
develop several programs in parallel with limited private investment, thus
diversifying the high scientific and technological risk and increasing chances of
long-term success. This case study shows how this strategy played out for
OncoArendi over the last 7 years and how OncoArendi positions itself within the
Polish biotech sector and on the increasingly competitive global biopharmaceutical
scene.
