London-based biotech startup Verdiva has come out of stealth with a whopping $410 million for a new range of drugs to combat the problem Obesity epidemic. It is one of the largest biotech VC deals ever in Europe, signaling investor interest in it booming Weight Loss Market.
Verdiva is trying to challenge the dominance of Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, the makers of the two most popular weight loss drugs, Ozempic and Wegovy. The company promises to offer less invasive pills instead of injectables. It's MonThe most advanced product is an oral GLP-1, a drug that suppresses hunger.
Verdiva was founded in July 2024 by executives from Aiolos Bio, the biotechnology company that was sold to GSK for $1.4 billion last year. The young company does not develop its therapies from scratch. It has acquired the rights to a range of weight loss drugs from Chinese firm Sciwind Biosciences.
Verdiva CEO Khurem Farooq, formerly CEO of Aiolos Bio, said current weight loss drugs left “significant unmet medical needs.”
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“People living with obesity and its complications deserve better options at every stage of their treatment,” Farooq said. “Our most mature program has the potential to be a best-in-class, once-weekly oral treatment for obesity and weight loss that could significantly improve access and affordability for patients.”
General Atlantic and Dutch biotech VC Forbion led the Series A round, which comes amid rising demand for obesity drugs. Global spending on these drugs exceeded 30 billion US dollars for the first time in 2024. At one treasureThe GLP-1 drug market could reach annual sales of more than $200 billion by 2031.
The meteoric rise of weight loss drugs correlates with rising obesity rates worldwide. In the USA, where over 40% of the adult population lives obeseone in eight people report having taken a drug such as Wegovy and Ozempic at least once. Even Elon Musk admitted taking Ozempic. Use is lower in Europe because there is less obesity, but sales, particularly of Wegovy, are increasing explodes. However, some patients have experienced worrying side effects.
Whether Verdiva's new treatments represent a better alternative to the status quo remains to be seen. The company says so The drug GLP-1 has completed phase 1 trials and is ready for phase two, where the drug will be tested on a larger number of people. But it still has to go through the third phase of testing, which could take years. A drug can only come onto the market after all three studies have been completed. Most drugs never leave the clinical trial phase.
However, this uncertainty is clearly not deterring investors. In the last year alone there have been some big rounds in this area, including one based in California BioAge Labs' $170 million Series D round based in New York 'Mesera's $350 million increase. In 2024 VCs invested more than $1.2 billion to weight-loss startups, the second-highest value ever.
