Year 2019 was devastating for all biotech start ups. Shares of the most established companies dealing with biotech Pharma products had nose dived.
Stephan Bancel, the CEO of a little known mRNA company was worried sick. The company’s shares are trading 35% below its initial value. Developing a new drug molecule consumes billions of dollars. He had queued up at the JP Morgan’s annual Health care conference where financiers gather to fund promising products. His company was developing a mRNA vaccine against RSV, CMV and of course a Flu shot. He needed money.
mRNA !
Everyone was aghast. Who would pump money into mRNA ? Lately mRNA had been a pariah. Nobody would touch it with a long rope.
He spent all his time sitting in the back benches and tried to eaves drop what some CECR members were discussing. CECR in short for CDC’s Crisis and Emergency team was discussing some unknown lung disease that was spreading in South China. Though China government had been vehemently denying its seriousness, already social media from the Asian nations are abuzz about a new epidemic.
Nobody could think in their wildest imagination that this unknown lung disease would spread to 180 countries and put the seven billion human beings on this earth in house arrest for the next 2 years.
At least Stephan Bancell had not. Nobody cared about his little known company which was seriously cash starved and may be shut down in few months.
Nobody would have imagined that that little known company Moderna was destined to sell 11 million doses of vaccine in the very next year. Stephan Bancel would be worth 440 Cr USD in another one year.
Nobody except the Pandemic. It was the mother of all pandemic. But in that sultry October day, it was beyond anybody’s wildest imaginations.
Ugur Sahin was sweating heavily under a 2019 October sun in this South American city. His little known company BioNTech used mRNA platform to produce anti cancer drugs. In the last 9 years, he had been able to bring only one drug against melanoma. It was tried against 250 volunteers in total till date. He had several promising molecules in the pipe line. But developing new molecules and their clinical trial needed billion dollars. He had listed his company in the NY stock exchange for finance and was on a promotional tour of American universities.
Nobody was interested. He needed at least 300 million to go forward. His financiers ruled: Either he reduces his initial offer by half or withdraw the total IPO. choice is his.
It was hard choice. He consulted the handful colleagues accompanying him. BioNTech was a personal endeavour. he did not have much options though.
It was October 2019.
Ugur Sahin swallowed the insult and settled for 150 million instead.
He did not know about an unknown Pneumonia spreading in the distant South China city of Wuhan right at that moment. Otherwise his decisions would have been more aggressive.
He did not know that in one year he would be the richest German on this planet. The revenue of that unknown biotech company that had to settle for just 150 million in that October 2019 will overtake the total GDP of his country German. It will be valued as the most valuable company his nation.
Nobody could imagine such a growth. Nobody except the Pandemic. It was the mother of all pandemics. But on that sultry October day, it was beyond anybody’s wildest imaginations.
As Forbes noted:
“..Twenty million Americans lost their job in the pandemic. At the same time, 650 billionaires of America saw their net worth increase by more than 1 trillion dollars.”
It was a damn good pandemic at least for those billionaires.
Dr Ramakanta's Ideas 
Beautiful analysis of facts and circumstances. Thank you
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