Think Basel is just for pharma titans? Here’s the real story…

When people in the biotech industry think of Basel, they often picture two pharma giants: Roche and Novartis. While it’s true that these powerhouses have cemented the region’s status as a global life sciences leader, labeling Basel as “only a big pharma hub” misses the bigger picture. 

Beyond these multinational giants, the Basel Area boasts a dynamic and diverse life sciences ecosystem. Basel is the European hub for hundreds of small- and mid-cap biotechs (“SMIDs”), life sciences system enablers such as contract development and manufacturing organizations (“CDMOs”), supply chain experts, equipment manufacturers, and numerous U.S. companies competing across every stage of the clinical and commercial lifecycle. Here’s why all roads eventually lead to Basel for such a wide range of life-sciences businesses. 

The Basel Area’s startup scene is a hotbed of innovation, fueled by world-class academic research institutions. Ever heard of Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule (“ETH” or the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology)? It’s basically the Swiss version of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, (“MIT”). Albert Einstein was a professor at ETH. The university’s Basel-based Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering (“D-BSSE”) boasts faculty members who are the leading biotech minds making a global impact on fields like synthetic biology, computational biology and biotechnology. Research from these scientific luminaries often bridges academia and industry, influencing scientific progress and biotech innovation in Basel and throughout the world.

© ETH Zurich / Alessandro Della Bella

Meanwhile, scientific researchers who have links to the University of Basel have been awarded no less than eight (8) Nobel Prizes and two (2) Lasker Awards. Although Watson and Crick discovered the double-helix structure of DNA, Friedrich Miescher is credited with being the first to actually isolate DNA from cells, doing so after completing his medical studies at the University of Basel, and before returning to Basel as a faculty member who was instrumental in literally establishing the entire field of biochemistry!

Imagine the scene in a café in the middle of Basel: A brilliant future Nobel Prize winner is meeting an up-and-coming US-based Chief Scientific Officer of an emerging advanced therapeutics company over an espresso; a professor from D-BSSE connects a start-up CEO with his former scientific protégé, who is now Chief R&D Officer of a large-cap biotech based in Boston. These interactions happen frequently and organically in the Basel biotech ecosystem, which warmly supports and connects innovators operating in the geography.

The Basel Area’s life sciences ecosystem thrives on a diverse range of specialized companies that provide critical infrastructure and expertise, supporting both industry giants and innovative startups. For example:

• Lamprecht Pharma Logistics plays a pivotal role in maintaining the integrity of biopharmaceutical supply chains.
• Bucher Biotec AG delivers cutting-edge scientific instruments essential for research and manufacturing excellence.
• Genedata (part of Danaher) is a bioinformatics company that develops enterprise software solutions to accelerate research and development.

These companies add depth and resilience to the Basel ecosystem by offering specialized capabilities to advanced therapeutics organizations of all sizes. Efficient, innovative and solutions-focused, these suppliers add to Basel’s robust and interconnected scientific network.

CDMOs perform pivotal work for emerging therapeutics players, enabling biotechs and other advanced therapy companies to scale efficiently and effectively.

The Basel Area is home to Lonza, often recognized as the world’s leading CDMO, as well as many other leading CDMOs such as Bachem (peptides), Celonic (biologics/cell & gene) and Carbogen Amcis (drug product services). Just recently, Corden Pharma announced an expansion of its platform with an investment of at least €500 million to build a greenfield facility. The Basel Area is a top player in this sector of the drug development marketplace, and the pace continues to accelerate with emerging CDMOs like Ten 23 Health pushing forward with new, innovative solutions for complex injectable products.

Although the Basel Area is clearly most famous for being home to powerhouse pharma companies like Roche and Novartis, a range of other variously sized players have also established locations in the area. For example, Moderna, BeiGene and Regeneron are but a few of the large-cap biotechs with Basel offices. An exciting crop of innovative U.S. small- and mid-cap biotechs (“SMIDs”) have also chosen Basel as their European business hub or European base of operations for lab work, including Neurocrine Biosciences, Ultragenyx and Skyhawk Therapeutics.  Regardless of their size, these organizations will often eventually establish and grow a range of functions in their Basel headquarters, from pre-clinical research, clinical operations, medical and regulatory affairs to commercialization, marketing and sales to quality control and supply chain management.