BIO Investor Forum 2007 Conference Provides Insights Into Investment Pipeline</a>
WASHINGTON, D.C. (October 03, 2007) -- The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) today announced the moderators and panelists delivering the opening plenary session, Check Your Options: Raising Public and Private Financing in Today’s Marketplace, at the BIO Investor Forum 2007. The conference will take place October 9-11, at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco, Calif.
“These sessions offer attendees the opportunity to get an upfront look at the financial, strategic and other business issues affecting life science investment decisions and opportunities in 2008 and beyond,” said Alan Eisenberg, executive vice president for Emerging Companies and Business Development at BIO.
The opening plenary session will touch upon the array of financing options and the implications of pursuing those options when running one’s own business and managing shareholder value and dilution. The session will be moderated by Howie Furst, M.D., a partner at Deerfield Partners, LP. Panelists include:
· Eric H. Bjerkholt, senior vice president, Corporate Development and Finance; Sunesis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.;
· John Chambers, president, Acumen BioFin, a Division of Rodman & Renshaw, LLC;
· Julia P. Gregory, executive vice president and chief financial officer, Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc.;
· Annette Grimaldi, managing director and head of Life Sciences Investment Banking; Jefferies & Company, Inc.; and
· Ben Perkins, head of Healthcare Investment Banking, Pacific Growth Equities, LLC.
The meeting will close with a plenary session entitled The Last Word on the Biotech Watch List for 2008.
A number of thought provoking business roundtable sessions have also been added to the program. Roundtable sessions include:
· An Opportunity That Shouldn’t Be Missed – Recognizing Biotech Turnaround Investments – Moderated by Rahul Jasuja, Ph.D., managing director, Life Sciences Research, MDB Capital Group LLC
Veteran investors will share stories on the performance of biotech blow-ups and the impressive turnarounds that have rewarded new investors.
· IPOs and Exit Strategies for Achieving Liquidity – Getting the Money while the Getting is Good – Moderated by Annette Grimaldi, managing director and Head of Life Sciences Investment Banking, Jefferies & Company, Inc.
Investor and industry experts will describe the factors, metrics and cultural decisions that are weighed when determining a company's future.
· Crossover Investors – Augmenting or Replacing VCs in Late-Stage Funding – Moderated by K.C. Stone, managing director for Private Equities and Venture Capital Services, Pacific Growth Equities, LLC
This session will uncover the rationale for crossover investor participation from the company and investor's viewpoints as well as the criteria and returns these sophisticated public-private players have for investing.
· Clinical Development Plan Diligence, Asset Valuation and the Fundamentals of Value Creation – Moderated by Russ Belden, managing partner, Bridge Consulting
This session will focus on CEO and investor awareness of early clinical development plan, and asset valuation appropriate for the development stage to inform investment decision from the investor’s and management (CEO) perspective.
In addition, a comprehensive program of Therapeutic Workshops will further add to the depth of the program. Workshops will focus on therapies including Hepatitis C Virus, Obesity, Cancer and Alzheimer’s disease.
Now in its fourth year, the BIO Investor Forum is host to public and private equity investors, research analysts, investment bankers and senior-level industry executives focused on investment trends and business development opportunities in the life sciences. The conference will also include more than 225 public and venture-stage company presentations, one-on-one investor meetings and numerous networking opportunities.
The conference is hosted by BIO and supported by Pacific Growth Equities; Acumen BioFin, a Division of Rodman & Renshaw; Jefferies & Company; RBC Capital and Bank of America.
For the complete program and registration information, please visit http://investorforum.bio.org. Registration is complimentary for credentialed members of the media.
Upcoming BIO Events
BIO-Europe 2007 International Partnering Conference
November 12-14, 2007
Hamburg, Germany
Pacific Rim Summit on Industrial Biotechnology and Bioenergy
November 14-16, 2007
Honolulu, Hawaii
World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology & BioProcessing
April 27-30, 2008
Chicago, Ill.
2008 BIO International Convention
June 17-20, 2008
San Diego, Calif.
About BIO
BIO represents more than 1,100 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers and related organizations across the United States and 31 other nations. BIO members are involved in the research and development of healthcare, agricultural, industrial and environmental biotechnology products. BIO also produces the annual BIO International Convention, the world’s largest gathering of the biotechnology industry.
Visit www.bio.org for more information on BIO and all upcoming events.
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