Also, deals involving AbCellera/Angios, AstraZeneca/Alchemab, Kowa/Esteve, OSE/Veloxis, Tris/Park, Core One/Akome and Vertex/Obsidian.

In this latest installment of the VC Playbook series, In Vivo sits down with SV Health Investors’s Houman Ashrafian. The managing partner outlines the group’s investment philosophy, today’s skill set for VC success, and expectations for the future of Britain’s biotech industry post-Brexit and post-pandemic.

Private Company Edition: VC mega-rounds boosted the Q1 2021 total. Also, new funds from Versant, The Column Group and Rapha Capital keep cash flowing into biopharma; up to $525m is invested in Exscientia; and Arch Oncology and Boundless Bio raised $105m each, while Forge brought in $120m.

Argenx partners with Elektrofi and Iontas; China’s Qilu obtains global rights to Peptron’s antibody-drug conjugate and also ends co-development pact with Quantum Genomics.