Europe’s biotech and healthcare depends on more capital

Last week, at the European Medicines Agency’s roundtable celebrating 20 years of the SME Regulation, Sander Slootweg, Chair Elect of Invest Europe, and Vice-Chair of the Venture Capital Platform Council, delivered an ambitious call to action: it is time to rethink how Europe supports its most innovative biotech and healthcare SMEs.

The facts are stark: Europe’s share of global clinical trials has dropped, unpredictable reimbursement timelines and slow market uptake make Europe less attractive for launching novel therapeutics, R&D investment as a share of GDP lags far behind the US.

Despite two decades of progress – the SME status is very beneficial for life sciences companies – the main bottlenecks remain access to capital, regulatory complexity, and fragmented market access. Europe once led the world in clinical trials, now we are being outpaced by the US and China.

The consequence? Innovation and capital are increasingly crossing the Atlantic. On top of this migration, patients face slower access and fewer breakthroughs reaching the market. These are not just statistics – they have real-life consequences for Europe’s competitiveness and public health.

Europe can only lead in biotech and healthcare if we create a commercially attractive home market. That means:

More capital: mobilising both private and public investment – with public funding complementing private capital – to bridge funding gaps, scale promising ventures, and sustain companies throughout their full growth cycle.
Faster access: although the SME Regulation is favourable, but complexity slows EU biotech and healthcare. Incentives lower barriers, yet the regulatory and reimbursement processes remain challenging. Europe must streamline and harmonise regulatory procedures, accelerate clinical feedback loops, and create a true single-market mindset for the sector. Europe’s innovators cannot afford to be held back by fragmentation and red tap.
Smarter incentives: Europe can only lead with a predictable, innovation-enabling environment, which will attract investment and increase breakthrough therapies reaching European patients first, not last.

Biotech and healthcare are not just another industry, they are strategic pillars of Europe’s competitiveness, resilience, and global influence.

With the right policy and investment environment, Europe can once again be the place where life-changing science thrives, for patients, for innovation, and for the next generation of entrepreneurs.