Yokogawa Electric Corporation has announced that it will invest in the Daiwa Taiwan-Japan BioVenture Investment Limited Partnership II (the “Fund”), which was established by DCI Partners Co., Ltd. on December 15, 2020. The scope of the Fund’s investment activities covers Japan and Taiwan, and includes as yet unlisted drug discovery and regenerative medicine biotech startup companies, and candidate drugs developed by universities, research institutes, and private corporations. With this investment, Yokogawa Electric aims to accelerate the expansion of businesses related to pharmaceuticals and foodstuffs, and contribute to the realization of a healthy and thriving society.

 

In addition to investing in biotech venture companies that have already launched, the Fund has adopted a venture creation model whereby it takes the lead in activities such as technology seed discovery, human resource acquisition, research and development, and support for company establishment. This means that the scope of investment can be expanded, and the number of investment opportunities increased. With this investment, Yokogawa will be able to swiftly obtain the latest information on companies involved in life sciences, expand its network to include venture companies, experts, and other such parties, and rapidly link up with promising companies. The investment will support the development and expansion of new projects in Yokogawa’s life innovation business and will lead to an expanded and enhanced portfolio in this area.

 

Yokogawa provides confocal scanner units that allow pharmaceutical developers to observe live cells in 3D and high content analysis systems that perform automated evaluation experiments for drugs using cultivated cells. Yokogawa also provides comprehensive quality control, manufacturing, production management, and other solutions to the pharmaceutical industry. The company believes that such solutions are highly compatible with the activities of drug development biotech venture companies working on regenerative medicine and biopharmaceuticals in Japan, which are one target of the Fund’s investment. In Taiwan, many drug discovery biotech startups have appeared in recent years, and Yokogawa also aims to connect with such companies. The excellent drug development platform in Taiwan makes it easier to carry out initial clinical trials, and to transfer development to other regions. In addition, its geographical advantage as a clinical development hub in Asia makes it an ideal entry point into the American and Chinese markets, and Yokogawa is targeting global business expansion with the Taiwanese market as a foothold.