Biotech sector reaches record investment levels, surpassing €400 million

AseBio today presented the 2025 AseBio Report, “Biotech Act: An Opportunity for Spanish Biotechnology,” at the COAM in Madrid. The report was produced with the support of MSD Spain as the main partner.

During the event, AseBio shared its position on the Biotech Act, developed through the work carried out since the beginning of this initiative, and discussed with its members the opportunities that this future legislation may create for both Spanish and European biotechnology.

AseBio welcomes the European Commission’s proposal, particularly regarding access to funding, regulatory simplification, innovation acceleration and the promotion of artificial intelligence. However, the association believes that the future legislation should be more ambitious and be supported by greater resources and implementation capacity to enable Europe to fully unlock the potential of biotechnology.

Regarding the proposed Biotech Act II, AseBio expects the new regulation to achieve its objective of ensuring that innovative biotechnology products and processes can rapidly enter and circulate throughout the European Union.

"The future Biotech Act represents a historic opportunity to restore Europe’s competitiveness and strengthen its strategic autonomy, ensuring that we do not fall behind. Spain has a strong foundation of science, talent, innovative companies and industrial capabilities that enable us to approach this new phase with ambition and leadership. The findings of the 2025 AseBio Report demonstrate the strength of the Spanish biotechnology sector, which continues to grow in investment, employment, scientific output and economic impact. Now is the time to support this potential with more accessible financing, a more agile regulatory framework, and a strong commitment to innovation and biomanufacturing. At AseBio, we will continue working alongside public administrations and the broader ecosystem to ensure that this opportunity translates into greater growth, increased innovation, and stronger leadership for Spain within the European biotechnology landscape," said Cristina Nadal, President of AseBio.

Biotech companies contribute 1.2% of GDP and support more than 158,000 jobs

According to the 2025 AseBio Report, the activity of biotech companies generated €13.271 billion in income, representing 1.2% of Spain’s GDP.

Tax revenues generated by the sector reached €5.504 billion, equivalent to 0.5% of GDP, while biotech activity supported 158,366 jobs, accounting for 0.78% of total national employment. The average salary per employee in the sector is almost double the national average.

Record-breaking investment attraction

The biotech sector achieved a historic record in capital raising, surpassing €400 million.

Total investment increased by an unprecedented 125%, rising from €181 million in 2024 to €408 million in 2025. At the same time, the number of investment transactions grew by 11%, from 52 to 59 deals, with an average deal size of nearly €7 million.

The participation of international investors and CDTI Innvierte played a key role in this achievement.

CDTI Innvierte participated in funding rounds involving 10 companies, contributing €47.2 million, while capital increases involving international investors generated €302 million across 12 transactions.

In addition, biotech companies raised €3.6 million through crowdfunding and secured €24 million through the European Investment Bank (EIB) and ENISA.

Biotech Companies Invested €1.46 Billion in R&D in 2024

Biotechnology companies invested €1.46 billion in R&D in 2024.

This represents 6% of total national R&D investment, with biotech companies directly executing 60% of this amount, equivalent to €882.7 million.

A total of 67% of biotech R&D investment is financed through companies’ own resources, while investment in physical infrastructure has increased significantly.

The biotechnology sector now ranks as the third most R&D-intensive sector in Spain, behind only R&D services and education.

A Science-Driven Sector with a Strong Research Workforce

Biotech companies maintain their position as the second sector with the highest proportion of researchers among total employees, at 14.98%, surpassed only by R&D service companies.

The report highlights that in 2024 Spain produced 1,192 biotechnology-related scientific publications, representing 1% of total Spanish scientific output and 2.5% of global scientific production in biotechnology.

Over the past decade, enrolment in biotechnology undergraduate and master’s degree programmes has increased by more than 40%.

In the 2024–2025 academic year, the latest period for which data are available, 9,949 students were enrolled in biotechnology degree and master’s programmes. Approximately 62% of these students were women.

Biotech companies also increased female representation within their workforce, from 55% in 2023 to 59% in 2024.

Looking specifically at R&D personnel, the biotech sector remains the third-ranked sector in female representation, behind the pharmaceutical sector and healthcare and social services activities, with women accounting for 61% of R&D staff, a slight increase compared with the previous year.

Biotech companies also show significantly higher female representation in leadership positions compared with companies listed on Spain’s IBEX-35 index. While only one IBEX-35 company is led by a woman, one in four biotech companies has a female CEO.

More Than 1,100 Biotech Companies in Spain

The number of biotech companies in Spain increased to 1,119 in 2025, representing a 10.4% increase compared with the previous year.

The structure of the sector shows that 52% of biotech companies are microenterprises, while 43.6% are SMEs.

By number of companies, Catalonia ranks first with 23.32% of the total, followed by Madrid (18.68%), Andalusia (12.33%), the Basque Country (9.65%), and the Valencian Community (8.85%).

Human health remains the leading field of activity, accounting for 55.5% of biotech companies, although this represents a decline from 58% the previous year.

Food-related biotechnology ranks second, representing 32.6% of companies, up from 27% in 2023, demonstrating that food innovation remains one of the most dynamic application areas within the biotechnology sector.

The remaining activity areas include:

• Animal health and aquaculture: 16.1%
• Agriculture and forestry production: 14%
• Environment: 13.1%
• Industrial biotechnology: 9.8%

Finally, biotech companies established 266 partnerships in 2025, including 168 collaborations with research centres or foundations, 50 partnerships with other biotech companies, and 40 collaborations with other types of companies.