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Financial environment remains strong for ophthalmology innovation
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SAN DIEGO — Financial activity in the ophthalmology industry is still robust but appears more like 2013 than the strong growth seen in 2014, according to a speaker here.
William J. Link, PhD, managing director of Versant Ventures, expressed optimism in the innovation environment in ophthalmology in a presentation at the Ophthalmology Innovation Summit. He discussed the state of the public market, initial public offerings, mergers and acquisitions, venture and other forms of financing.
William J. Link
“The short story is that in the public markets there is a lot of activity and momentum,” Link said. “In 2013 we had a substantial public market that escalated in 2014. The number of IPOs in the first quarter of 2014 was double the number of 2015. It looks like 2015 will be like 2013, but it is still strong.”
Although venture investing in health care had been on a downward trend between 2007 and 2012, since 2013 venture investing has been moving upward, he said.
“It look like we are now gaining momentum in terms of investing,” Link said.
In the area of mergers and acquisitions, the largest acquisition was the Actavis acquisition of Allergan, he said. While there were substantial mergers and acquisitions on the pharmaceutical side of ophthalmology, device manufacturers had a similar amount of activity without a similar major acquisition.
One note of interest, he said, is that even though many bio-pharmaceutical development companies are located outside of the U.S., few early stage device companies are.
“In summary, the financing environment is picking up; 2014 was a year of strong returns,” Link said. - by David W. Mullin
Disclosure: Link is managing director of Versant Ventures.