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Toni Julià, CDS at IMIDomics CDS, received the award on behalf of its founder, Sara Marsal (Photo: CataloniaBio & HealthTech).
 23.03.2022

IMIDomics wins the Bioèxit Award from CataloniaBio & HealthTech

CataloniaBio & HealthTech has awarded the biotech company IMIDomics, based in the Barcelona Science Park, with the Bioèxit Award for the exemplary translation from the clinic to the business world and, in particular, for the milestones achieved in funding during 2021 in the  field of biomedicine and health in Catalonia. The ceremony took place yestaerday as part of the CataloniaBio & HealthTech Gala Dinner at the Palau de la Música in Barcelona, which was attended by the Catalan Minister of Health, Josep Maria Argimon, and more than 250 members of the association, including entrepreneurs, executives, and investors in the sector.

The jury has especially valued IMIDomics‘ ability to raise international funds during  2021. The biotechnology, a spin-off from the Vall d’Hebron University Hospital-VHIR closed a round of  14 million euros last July, led by the American firm DNS Capital, with the participation of the pharmaceutical company Brystol Myers Squibb, The Pritzker Organization and TAO Capital, among other investors.

IMIDomics is working on the discovery and development of new drugs for the treatment of immune-mediated inflammatory diseases and has created the IMIDomics Precision Discovery Platform, that will accelerate precision medicine in this therapeutic field and respond to needs that are not yet covered. In this sense, the jury also highlighted the trajectory of the company as a paradigmatic and successful  example of the translation from the clinic to a company.

IMIDomics is one of the 11 companies chosen to take part in the BCN Health Booster acceleration programme, promoted by the Barcelona Science Park and the Barcelona City Council, in collaboration with Barcelona Activa and support from Biocat. Participating in this programme has allowed the company to begin working at its new facilities at the Park.

Sara  Marsal, co-founder and CMO, thanked the award via video from San Francisco, where she is working on the company’s strategic plan. On his behalf, Toni Julià received the award from the Minister of Health of the Generalitat de Catalunya, Josep Maria Argimon. Marsal thanked the support of all those people, patients and all those who have accompanied them in all these years of growth of the company, “IMIDomics is a collective project and I cannot conceive of this award but as a recognition to all those who have made it possible”. She reflected on entrepreneurship, saying that “it is not an easy or risk-free journey”. “If I look back and think about the successes we have had, I would point at having a global and international approach from the beginning, excellence  in work and team, and confidence in people,” she added.

To date, the Bioèxit Award has been given to Oryzon (2015), Minoryx Therapeutics and Palobiofarma (2016), STAT-Dx and Mosaic Biomedicals (2017), Anaconda Biomed and Mind the Byte (2018), Ysios Capital and Antonio Parente (2019), Kymos (2020) and ONA Therapeutics (2021).

The CataloniaBio & HealthTech Gala Dinner

The CataloniaBio & HealthTech Gala Dinner has become the benchmark annual event for the biomedicine and health sector in Catalonia, bringing together over 200 entrepreneurs, executives, researchers, politicians and public figures.

During the Night, Joan Puig, the president of CataloniaBio & HealthTech, in what is his first appearance since the recent renewal of the Board of Directors, conveyed to attendees a message of excitement and optimism about the  situation the sector is living, despite the last two years with obvious  operational limitations due to the pandemic. “As reflected in the BioRegion Report, the sector is following a growth trend in the main macroeconomic indicators such as business creation, turnover and employment, at the same time as it has reached a new historical record of attracting investment reaching 238M,” he stressed.

» More information about the event at the CataloniaBio & HealthTech website [+]