Biopharma exec says Bitcoin could help industry through ‘biotech winter’
The post Biopharma exec says Bitcoin could help industry through ‘biotech winter’ appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
NASDAQ-listed biopharmaceutical firm Atai Life Sciences says cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin could be key to survival for biotech startups as they wade through years of regulatory approvals. Atai, which is developing mental health treatments using psychedelics like DMT and MDMA, has become the latest public company to announce plans to buy Bitcoin. It plans to buy $5 million of Bitcoin (BTC), its founder and chair Christian Angermayer wrote in a March 20 Substack post. “Drug development is a cash-hungry, long-term venture,” he said. “The necessary steps to achieve regulatory approval can easily take more than a decade.” TechCrunch reported in January that, according to multiple data sets, the number of startups shutting down rose in 2024 compared to 2023 as firms failed to receive more funding to keep running. Angermayer said the approval process is essential for drug development, but it exposes firms to financial risks while sticky inflation and high interest rates have caused the current “biotech winter.” Source: Christian Angermayer He added that the current industry approach is to put cash reserves in near-zero-yield accounts, as “preserving capital was more important than earning a return on their cash balance.” “This context sets the stage for considering unconventional treasury moves — like adding Bitcoin to the treasury — to address the twin threats of inflation and low-yielding reserves, and in general to optimize and maximize shareholder value.” Atai will join at least five other public medical companies that have bought Bitcoin in recent months with the aim of boosting shareholder returns. Biotech firm Quantum BioPharma said on March 20 that it had now spent $3.5 million in total to buy BTC and other cryptocurrencies after an initial $1 million investment in December. Medical device maker Semler Scientific said last month that since it started in May, it had spent a…
Filed under: News - @ March 21, 2025 7:25 pm