German biotech firms and their ability to innovate: an international comparison

In scholarly debate and the public arena, the German biotech industry is considered significantly less competitive than its British counterpart. It is also thought to be funded largely by the state. A study at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies suggests that these assumptions are not correct. No clear difference can be made out between the competitiveness of the biotech industry in Germany and Britain. The study also shows that biotech firms in Germany are funded mostly by venture capital, much of which comes from foreign investors. State funding plays little more than a supplementary role.