November 22, 2013
Successes in and out of the spotlight
Dear reader
You have to read the press release from Covagen very closely to realise the importance. In the third paragraph, the figure of €108 million is mentioned. A collaboration with Tanabe means the Swiss biotech start-up could receive this sum if certain milestones are achieved. Royalties on worldwide net sales of products may also result from the agreement. The press release also reports on the progress of Covagen’s drug development project: the company’s first molecule is moving towards a first-in-human study in early 2014.
Too little attention was paid this week to Creoptix, which closed a Series A CHF3 million financing round. The company, based in Wädenswil, develops best-in-class biosensor devices for the most demanding applications in drug discovery.
This week numerous start-ups were in the spotlight at awards ceremonies. Approppo, Ubique Engineering and Uepaa! were among the winners at the Best of Swiss Apps Awards. Credentis and Hypo Pet won Swiss Technology Awards. The award of the Swiss insurance sector’s Innovation Prize to bfox was noteworthy – large companies are more likely to feature.
In Berlin this week 12 young Swiss companies were in the spotlight, thanks to Swiss Venture Day, organised by CTI Invest in partnership with the Swiss embassy. The event attracted more than 60 participants. Just a day later, the Swiss Innovation Forum in Basel heard from the mayor of Berlin, Klaus Wowereit, about the characteristics and success factors that make Berlin a start-up hotspot.
There was also news of start-up supporters. The Social Entrepreneurship Initiative & Foundation (seif) has created in partnership with the CTI a label for social entrepreneurs, similar to the CTI Start-up Label.
Finally, the deadline for the best business idea awards for venture 2014 expires on 1 December. Start-ups can take advantage of the expertise of more than 150 experienced entrepreneurs, managers, venture capitalists and professors. And companies planning trade shows for next year should note the special offer from the Swiss Pavilion: it will have a presence at both Cebit 2014 and Hannover Messe 2014.
Have a nice weekend.
Stefan Kyora
Managing Editor, Startupticker.ch
News
The new Swiss Venture Capital Report was published on 26 January. It analyses 304 financing rounds closed in 2020 and includes further article such as an interview with Michael Hengartner, President of the ETH Board, and a list of Swiss "soonicorns". 
