☀️ Climate-Accelerated Health Issues + East Asia Health Tech 200
The worsening health outcomes in developing nations are being exacerbated by climate change. Resource limitations in these regions hinder the ability to manage outbreaks and maintain adequate living conditions.
Happy Monday 👋
Climate change is worsening health outcomes in developing nations with resource limitations in these regions making it difficult to manage outbreaks and ensure proper living conditions. In the Health Tech landscape, we revisit the 2023 East Asia Health Tech 200, highlighting the region's most promising startups in the health technology sector.
This Week's Topics
☀️ Climate-Accelerated Health Issues. Exploring the threats introduced by climate accelerated health issues
📊 Charts Spotlight. Nearly 3B people exposed to hazardous air pollution levels
📈 Digital and Telehealth Index. Maintains positive momentum in 2024
🏆 East Asia Health Tech 200. East Asia's most promising startups working in digital health, biotech, drug discovery, and analytics
📖 Annual Health Tech Outlook. 190+ pages of trends, insights, and data
💰 Health Tech Deals of the Week. Funding and M&A
Don't forget to check out the 2024 Global Health Tech Outlook and sign up for our Daily Newsletters, Chart of the Day, and Impact Capital Markets. For unlimited access to over one million charts, request a demo.
☀️ Climate-Accelerated Health Issues
Climate change is worsening health outcomes in developing nations as resource limitations in these regions make it difficult to manage outbreaks and ensure proper living conditions. A myriad of efforts exist to address these issues, but a unified global response is needed, yet international cooperation is uncertain due to global political tensions, and upcoming elections worldwide which could see reversals in climate commitments. Public skepticism towards climate change is also a growing hurdle, particularly in high-emitting countries like Russia, the US, and Japan.
Some health tech firms are positioned to address these challenges by changing patient-healthcare provider behaviors. Remote monitoring systems, wearables and other telemedicine health systems allow patients to connect with their providers from their homes. This reduces the need to travel to a provider for care, reducing emissions. Other MedTech companies are introducing reusable or recyclable medical consumables, reducing waste from healthcare facilities. However, there has yet to be broader adoption of these technologies in medical settings.
📊 Charts Spotlight - Nearly 3B People Exposed to Hazardous Air Pollution Levels
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Globally, approximately 2.8B individuals are exposed to hazardous air pollution levels, posing a significant health risk, particularly in industrializing middle-income countries. This issue affects marginalized communities, who not only face exposure to pollutants but also struggle to access adequate healthcare. Fossil fuel consumption stands out as a primary contributor to this crisis.
The South Asian region, emerged as one of the most heavily impacted areas in terms of air quality in 2023. Bangladesh faces numerous sources of pollution, including 8,000 brick kilns, illegal industrial activities, plastic waste incineration, vehicular emissions, and agricultural burning. India, particularly North India and cities like Delhi, face a similar condition, struggling with poor air quality attributed to biomass burning, coal combustion, and vehicle exhaust. The annual practice of crop burning further worsens air pollution levels, with neighboring countries like Nepal and Pakistan contributing to cross-border smoke during this period.
📈 Capital Markets - Digital and Telehealth Maintain Positive Momentum in 2024
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HolonIQ's Digital and Telehealth Index dropped to -12% in November 2023 but experienced a robust recovery in December 2023 and has maintained its positive trajectory. Over the past 12 months, the index has risen by 7%. While the onset of the pandemic accelerated telehealth adoption, it slowed down after the world adapted to the new norm. However, the sentiment on telehealth began to shift in 2023 as healthcare providers and patients began to realize the potential of digital and telehealth solutions.
As a result, the outlook for the digital and telehealth industry has been optimistic. Stocks within the index have experienced positive returns, supported by robust financial performance. Dexcom ($52B MCap) beat analysts expectations with 24% revenue growth in the first quarter of 2024, driven by heightened awareness of the benefits of its real-time continuous glucose monitoring system and strong customer additions. Its stock price also rose by 12% over the year. Labcorp ($18 MCap) also reported a strong first quarter in 2024, with strong revenue growth and a 7% increase in EPS to $3.68. Its stock price underpinned these financials, increasing 12% YoY.
🏆 East Asia Health Tech 200
The 2023 East Asia Health Tech 200 is HolonIQ’s annual list of the region's most promising startups in digital health, biotech, drug discovery, and analytics.
A couple of cohort members attracted the attention of investors. Arnatar (a Chinese drug discovery platform) raised $50M in a Series A round to fund its clinical trials and drug development process. D3 Bio (a Chinese oncology drug developer) raised $62M in a Series A funding round led by Medicxi (a UK-based health-centered venture capital firm), to fund the development and clinical trails for its lung cancer candidate. Aitrics (a Korean AI diagnostic provider) secured $20M in a Series B round to expense its regulatory approval process with the US FDA.
📊 2024 Global Health Tech Outlook
HolonIQ's annual analysis of the evolving Health Tech landscape offers over 190 pages of in-depth insights on market data, investments, strategic shifts, and trends in healthcare services, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, and medical hardware. Download the extract or purchase the full report.
💰 Health Tech Deals of the Week
HolonIQ actively monitors and tracks deals in the health industry across all regions of the world. Subscribe to our daily Impact Capital Markets newsletter to catch up on the top deals each day.
Funding
💊 SixPeaks, a Switzerland-based weight loss drug developer, raised $110M in Series A funding from founding investor Versant Ventures to expand its operations and R&D.
✨ Allez Health, a US-based smart biosensor company for digital health systems, raised $60M in Series A funding led by Osang Healthcare to expedite clinical trials, assist regulatory approval submissions, and scale manufacturing operations.
🧬 AltruBio, a US-based targeted cancer and immune-related inflammatory therapeutic developer, raised $225M in Series B funding led by BVF Partners to primarily support Phase II clinical studies of the ICE PSGL-1 agonist antibody ALTB-268 for treating ulcerative colitis.
🎗️ Pheon Therapeutics, a UK-based specialist in antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) for cancer, raised $120M in Series B funding led by TCGX to advance its differentiated ADC pipeline through clinical proof of concept and expand its in-house technology platforms to generate optimized ADC constructs.
🫀 R3 Vascular, a US-based medical device firm that creates innovative solutions for treating peripheral artery disease, raised $87M in Series B funding led by affiliates of Deerfield Management to support its clinical trials and development process.
M&A
🧠 Biogen, a US-based drug developer for neurological disorders. acquired Human Immunology Biosciences for $1.15B, a developer of precision medicines for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.
🎗️ Genmab, a Danish biotech company focused on developing antibody therapeutics for cancer treatment, acquired ProfoundBio for $1.8B, a developer of innovative targeted therapies for cancer patients.
🩺 KKR, a US-based global investment firm, acquired a stake in Infinx for $150M, a developer of a payment lifecycle system designed to automate and enhance revenue cycle workflow.
IPOs/Other Public Offerings
🔬 Telix Pharmaceuticals, an Australian-based clinical-stage biotech company, announced its plans to raise $100M in a US IPO.
💉 Foghorn Therapeutics, a US-based biotech firm, announced its plans to raise $110M through a direct share offering.
Thank you for reading. Have a great week ahead!
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