Investments in companies – 18.12.2019
BC Platforms, a world leader in genomic data management and analytics, today announced that it has closed a 15 million USD financing round alongside a new commercial partnership with IQVIA™ (NYSE: IQV). The round was led by IQVIA in conjunction with Debiopharm Innovation Fund and Tesi, a Finnish venture capital and private equity company. As part of the partnership, IQVIA and BC Platforms plan to launch new data driven technologies, integrating complex clinical and genomic data, to benefit transformational research.
IQVIA and BC Platforms have a shared vision to build a world leading analytics platform to enable the pharmaceutical industry’s advancement of precision medicine, improving the efficiency of drug development and patient outcomes. BC Platforms technology will enhance IQVIA’s E360™ Genomics – a scalable, privacy-preserving genotypic-phenotypic database solution – in supporting a federated data network of genomic related analytics while ensuring patient privacy.
BC Platforms will use the fundraising proceeds to expand its global network of clinical and genomics data, delivering novel automated solutions to pharmaceutical companies. To date, the company has established partnerships with approximately 100 enterprise level healthcare systems and biobanks globally in 25 countries and has recently established an entity in Singapore to spearhead its growing activities in Asia.
Tero Silvola, CEO at BC Platforms, said: “IQVIA and BC Platforms aim to combine genomic and clinical data assets around the world. IQVIA´s E360™ Genomics is built on patented techniques that allow us to build data access without compromising data privacy and security in any situation. Together with IQVIA´s deep healthcare expertise in managing and curating real-world data, we believe that we can accelerate precision medicine initiatives for patient benefits. This funding and commercial partnership will help accelerate our growth in serving healthcare and Life Science customers as well as connecting data partners in a global, interoperable federated network.’
Rob Kotchie, President, Real World Solution, IQVIA, said: “Drawing insights from integrated clinical-genomics data is a growing need of our life science and healthcare customers. Through the combination of BC Platforms technologies – which automates the workflow from genomic instruments to actionable insights – with IQVIAs leading real-world technologies platform we can enable customers to conduct novel research and discover new insights to advance healthcare.”
Tom Gibbs, Director at Debiopharm, commented: ‘We are dedicated supporters of innovation and believe that digital health and data accessibility are going to be key drivers of future healthcare research and development. We are delighted to be supporting BC Platforms, a leader in the field of genomic data management, in the next stage of their expansion and are excited by the potential of this collaboration with IQVIA.’
As part of its investment, IQVIA will have a designee on the BC Platforms’ Board of Directors.
Tesi’s Investment Manager Joni Karsikas comments: “The pharmaceutical industry and healthcare are operating in active partnership that is becoming ever closer. The pricing of pharmaceuticals, for instance, is more often being based on their impact. That requires genomic data to be combined with various clinical data registers. Patients will receive the most suitable and correctly-timed medications, and the system will charge for them according to the treatment results. We are very pleased that we can support BC Platforms, a pioneer in genomic data management, in the next stage of its expansion.”
Contact information:
BC Platforms, Tero Silvola, CEO, + 358 40 590 5733, tero.silvola@bcplatforms.com
IQVIA, Rob Kotchie, President Real World Solutions, + 44 20 3075 5705, Rob.Kotchie@iqvia.com
Tesi, Joni Karsikas, Investment Manager, +358 40 827 0395, joni.karsikas@tesi.fi
About BC Platforms
BC Platforms is a world leader in providing powerful genomic data management and analysis solutions. Our high performing genomic data management platform enables flexible data integration, secure analysis and interpretation of molecular and clinical information. The company has launched and opened a global network of biobanks, known as BCRQUEST.COM, to provide genomic and clinical cohort data for pharmaceutical and medical research and development. BC Platforms’ vision is to build the world’s leading analytics platform for healthcare and industry by 2020, providing access to diverse genomic and clinical data and samples from more than 5 million subjects consolidated from a global network of biobanks.
Founded in 1997 from an MIT Whitehead project spinoff, the Company has a strong scientific heritage underpinned by over 20 years of working in close collaboration with a network of leading researchers, developers, manufacturers and vendors. BC Platforms has global operations with its headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, research and development in Espoo, Finland, and sales and marketing in London, Boston, Vancouver and Singapore. For more information, please visit www.bcplatforms.com or follow us on Twitter @BCPlatforms.
About IQVIA
IQVIA (NYSE:IQV) is a leading global provider of advanced analytics, technology solutions and contract research services to the life sciences industry. Formed through the merger of IMS Health and Quintiles, IQVIA applies human data science — leveraging the analytic rigor and clarity of data science to the ever-expanding scope of human science — to enable companies to reimagine and develop new approaches to clinical development and commercialization, speed innovation and accelerate improvements in healthcare outcomes. Powered by the IQVIA CORE™, IQVIA delivers unique and actionable insights at the intersection of large-scale analytics, transformative technology and extensive domain expertise, as well as execution capabilities. With approximately 65,000 employees, IQVIA conducts operations in more than 100 countries.
IQVIA is a global leader in protecting individual patient privacy. The company uses a wide variety of privacy-enhancing technologies and safeguards to protect individual privacy while generating and analyzing information on a scale that helps healthcare stakeholders identify disease patterns and correlate with the precise treatment path and therapy needed for better outcomes. IQVIA’s insights and execution capabilities help biotech, medical device and pharmaceutical companies, medical researchers, government agencies, payers and other healthcare stakeholders tap into a deeper understanding of diseases, human behaviors and scientific advances, in an effort to advance their path toward cures. To learn more, visit www.iqvia.com.
About Tesi
Tesi (Finnish Industry Investment Ltd) is a state-owned investment company that wants to raise Finland to the front ranks of renewing economic growth by investing in funds and directly in companies. We invest profitably and responsibly, together with co-investors, to create the world’s new success stories. Our investments under management total 1.2 billion euros. Ambition for ownership and success www.tesi.fi | www.dtg.tesi.fi | @TesiFII
