Swiss HLG Conference 2025 - Press Release

SHAPING YOUR FUTURE...ACT NOW!

Basel, June 6th, 2025. The Swiss Healthcare Licensing Group (Swiss HLG), a non-profit association of Business Development and Licensing professionals, hosted its annual flagship conference in the stunning locale of Montreux.

Over two and a half days, 110 delegates from all over the world gathered in a beautiful lakeside setting to explore and discuss the theme "Shaping your future...Act now!"

The conference began with a keynote speech by David Veitch, CEO of Basilea, who highlighted the critical role of dealmaking in any portfolio strategy. He addressed potential barriers to successful partnerships and shared strategies for fostering mutually beneficial relationships. Dealmaking has been instrumental to Basilea's success and remains central to its operations.

The second keynote was delivered by Konstantina (Tina) Katcheves, SVP Global Business Development for Innovative Medicines at Teva Pharmaceuticals. She detailed how Teva has pivoted its business development focus to emerging therapeutic areas, positioning the organization for future growth. Drawing on her extensive experience, Tina emphasized the importance of authentic relationships, transparent communication, and mutual value creation in successful pharmaceutical partnerships.

Over the next two days, leading healthcare industry experts presented on three main themes, offering valuable insights for the future.

The first session examined the external drivers of portfolio strategy, featuring four inspiring presentations. From Monday keynote speaker Jeff Berkowitz, CEO at Real Endpoints, attendees learned about the critical role of payers, their significant influence on access and product pricing, and the uncertainties created by a dynamic policy environment. Key strategies for biopharma companies to succeed were also discussed. Melanie Senior highlighted how change presents opportunities for innovation, requiring new assumptions about the meaning of "innovation" today. Companies and leaders must stay focused on delivering added value for patients and payers. Subsequent sessions addressed navigating EU pharmaceutical legislative changes, recent developments and emerging challenges, and the importance of joint clinical assessments in BD thinking with the new pan-EU HTA process.

The focus then shifted to managing a sustainable portfolio through dealmaking. Speakers shared various perspectives on innovative dealmaking, including managing a portfolio of minority stakes, building a product portfolio, exploring creative deal structures, and strategic divestments/acquisitions to optimize portfolio growth.

In the final session, delegates learned how to adapt their portfolio strategy. Genmab shared their journey from a Danish start-up to a commercial biotech. Molecular Partners discussed their pioneering work with DARPin therapeutics, which has helped them navigate uncertainty and leverage opportunities. Siegfried showcased how a CDMO must adapt and anticipate the changing environment to achieve success.

The conference concluded with two insightful keynote speeches. Murray Aitken from IQVIA discussed the evolving US landscape for life sciences and its implications for dealmaking. Isabel Afonso, CEO of Arcera Life Sciences, shared the journey of Arcera and how business development has been instrumental in building strategic and resilient portfolios.

In addition to the informative presentations, participants had ample opportunities to network in the beautiful location.

The Swiss HLG Board extends its gratitude to all presenters and participants for the lively discussions and interactions. 

We also thank our supporters for their crucial and valued support

To view photos of the Conference 2025

START-UP PARTNERING INITIATIVE 2025 - Deadline extended!

Attention healthcare startups, we have extended the deadline to apply to our third complimentary educational program.

We are accepting applications until May 9th, 2025!

Swiss HLG, in partnership with Johnson & Johnson & BaseLaunch initiative is designed to help early-stage healthcare companies become partner-ready and position themselves for long-term success.

If this is relevant for your company, you are very welcome to join us. If not, but you know start-ups that could benefit, please share the information with them. To apply companies should complete the form on our website

STARTUP APPLICATION 2025

Swiss HLG Webinar - USA & China - how the environment is changing & how this could impact deal-making

Michael A. Margolis R.Ph. - Oppenheimer Biopharma MA and Strategic Collaboration Insights - Swiss HLG

To view Michael A. Margolis R.Ph. presentation,
click download button below :

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Howard Chen - China Market Landscape and New Co Model

To view Howard Chen presentation,
click download button below :

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LIVE WEBINAR - USA & China - how the environment is changing & how this could impact deal-making.

Swiss HLG & Pharmaceutical Licensing Group UK invites you to join us for this timely webinar
27th of March from 14:30 - 16:00 CET/13:30 -15:00 GMT / 9:30 -11:00 am EST

Fast changing times call for agile deal-making strategies. Join us for strategic insights on the future evolution of the US and China pharmaceutical markets and how this could impact deal making.

Howard Chen, Managing Principal and Head of Services at IQVIA China,
brings a wealth of experience in management consulting and investment banking, particularly in the healthcare sector. He has been with IQVIA since 2017 and has over 19 years of experience in the industry, including cross-border M&A deals and fundraising for various healthcare players. His insights on the China perspective are highly valued in the industry.

Michael Margolis, Senior Managing Director and Head of Healthcare Investment Banking at Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.., is known for his expertise in healthcare investment banking. He has advised numerous organizations on strategic growth initiatives and has a deep understanding of the US healthcare market. His perspective on the US healthcare landscape is highly regarded.
These two live sessions will be followed by a Q&A.

Swiss Healthcare Start-up Partnering Initiative 2025

Swiss Healthcare Licensing group is happy to announce the Swiss Healthcare Start- up Partnering Initiative. An educational program for early-stage healthcare companies to help them become partnering ready

This complimentary program is offered in collaboration with Johnson & Johnson and BaseLaunch, and consists of four linked workshops where leading experts will cover essential topics in healthcare business development.

We look forward to hosting you at our Swiss HLG Start-up Initiative workshops.

APPLICATION FOR THE 2025 STARTUP INITIATIVE

(Early Discovery, Lead Identification, Lead Optimization, Preclinical, Phase 1 etc,,)
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Click or drag a file to this area to upload.
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Please note that we request a commitment to attend all 4 complimentary workshops and to fund your own travel.

Swiss HLG Conference 2025 - Registration Open!

We would like to invite you to join us for our flagship annual conference which will once again be held at the historic Belle Epoque Grand Hotel Suisse Majestic in the beautiful scenic location of Montreux, Switzerland on 25th - 27th May 2025.

REGISTER HERE


Our conference is recognised for the consistently high quality of presenters and discussions. Fully 70% of respondents in our 2024 delegate survey rated the program, networking and location all as excellent!

We have an Early Bird special you can benefit from - of you register before February the 28th, 2025 then you will obtain as 50% discount on your 2025 Swiss HLG membership fee!


The 2025 conference title is “Shaping your future..... Act now!” Creative dealmaking to optimize portfolio strategy in a fast- changing environment.

Dealmaking is a crucial tool in building a resilient, future-proofed portfolio for your company. Our conference will equip you with the perspectives, learnings and tools to achieve this goal. Our first session will look at key trends to consider in the biopharma environment, including therapeutic, technological, regulatory, payer and geopolitical developments. We then look at essential concepts to follow in building a portfolio and learn from successful practitioners. Finally, we will see how agile dealmaking an essential tool is when handling unexpected events.

We have an exciting lineup of speakers and panelists, with Keynotes from David Veitch at Basilea Pharmaceutica, Konstantina Katcheves at Teva Pharmaceuticals and presentations from Melanie Senior, Sarah Thomae, Sian Tanner, Philippe Beaupere, Kelvin Stott, Karen Wagner, Juergen Eckhardt, Frédéric Levy, Peter Louwagie, Marianne Spaene, Laura Jeanbart and with a closing Keynote from Isabel Afonso at Arcera.


We look forward to seeing you again in May!

Welcome to our new board member Monika Baudler-Klein

It is with great pleasure to announce that Swiss HLG is welcoming our new board member Monika Baudler-Klein, joining us from our valued long term supporter Roche.

Monika holds a PhD in Biochemistry from University of Würzburg and has been in the pharmaceutical industry for more than 25 years working in various discovery, development, commercial and licensing roles with a focus on people and project leadership, portfolio management and strategy giving her a true end-to-end perspective on bringing transformative medicines to patients. 

Before joining Roche in 2012, she served as Global Head of Pipeline Sourcing and Portfolio Management at Nycomed where she and her team drove an ambitious in-licensing strategy to complement the company’s portfolio. In her time in Roche, Monika initially focused on supporting the growing Neurology pipeline from a portfolio, commercial and in-licensing strategy perspective before taking on the leadership of the late stage Alzheimer’s portfolio as Life Cycle Leader Gantenerumab and Crenezumab. 

A catalyst for building trustful relationships with internal and external stakeholders, she recently joined Roche’s Corporate Business Development as Executive Director Global Alliance & Asset Management leveraging her broad experience in skillfully managing partnerships with diverse external groups and organizations. 

Monika adds: ¨I am thrilled to be joining the exceptional and highly experienced Swiss HLG Board and I look forward to making an impact on the active Swiss health care community by contributing my broad pharma expertise and by fostering productive partnerships and cross-industry collaboration.”

Swiss Healthcare Start-up Partnering Initiative 2025

Check here in Q1 for information and timelines for the 2025 Swiss HLG Startup Initiative program.

Swiss Healthcare Licensing group is happy to announce the Swiss Healthcare Start- up Partnering Initiative which we have successfully run for 2 years. This is an educational program for early-stage healthcare companies to help them become partnering ready.

This complimentary program is offered in collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Innovation and BaseLaunch, and consists of four linked workshops where leading experts will cover essential topics in healthcare business development.

Swiss HLG & Molecular Partners - Basel Networking event

Join us for an engaging Swiss HLG networking event kindly supported by Molecular Partners. 

This is a unique opportunity to hear from renowned speakers as they explore the exciting rise of radioligand therapies. 

We are thrilled to have the following speakers:

Don’t miss the chance to connect with industry professionals during our networking apero afterwards. 

The event will take place at the Novartis Pavillon, November 28th  from 5:30pm - 9:00pm

Registration begins at 5:30 PM — reserve your spot today!

REGISTER HERE

Free for Swiss HLG members!

Swiss HLG, PLCF & Italy HLG - Live Webinar

Swiss HLG, PLCF & Italy HLG invites you to join us for this timely webinar on the 7th November from 14:30 -16:00 CET. 

STRATEGIC COMMERCIALIZATION OPTIONS IN EUROPE FOR MID SIZED HEALTHCARE COMPANIES

Ronald Van Zitteren, Principal at AIM will discuss the challenges faced by New Market Entrants in launching their products in Europe and Francois-Xavier CAPELO, VP International, Bioprojet will talk about Bioprojet’s orphan drug launch in Europe. 

These two sessions will be followed by a live Q&A moderated by Bruno Delie, General Manager, Luye Pharma EU.

REGISTER HERE