Breakthrough in clinical trials: Drug successes can unleash enormous potential. Example: The approvals of the diabetes injection "Ozempic" and the weight loss injection "Wegovy" by Novo Nordisk led to a significant increase in the company's market value. However, sentiment around Novo Nordisk has shifted, and the stock has lost ground again over the past 12 months. License agreements: Companies can monetize their research results by granting rights to their intellectual property to third parties, which increases sales and growth opportunities. Digitization: Big data, machine learning and robotics make research, development and production more efficient. AI as a game changer: Artificial intelligence accelerates drug development, improves the prediction of treatment effects and optimizes clinical studies.

Drug flops: If a new drug fails in a clinical phase, there is a risk of financial setbacks and a loss of investor confidence. Example: The failure of Roche’s Alzheimer’s drug «Gantenerumab» . High volatility: The development cycles and the unpredictability of study results lead to above-average fluctuations in biotech shares. Regulatory uncertainties: Strict approval procedures with regulatory authorities such as the FDA or EMA can lead to rejections or delays, which can mean significant setbacks.

Health is always booming

Biotech investments: Where science and returns meet

Q: What makes the biotech sector so attractive for investors?

The sector is characterized by technological innovations, significant growth potential and a degree of resilience to crises. For investors who are prepared to take the associated risks, the sector represents a stable source in a diversified portfolio.

Q: How does a biotech investment differ from a traditional healthcare fund?

While a traditional healthcare fund also considers pharmaceutical groups, pharmaceutical suppliers, medical technology companies and service providers, biotech investments are aimed solely at the opportunities in this specific sector. The companies usually focus exclusively on the development of new drugs, vaccines, diagnostic methods or personalized medicine based on biotechnological principles.

Q: What are the risks of biotech investments?

Drug flops, regulatory uncertainties and high volatility in biotech shares contrast with the attractive opportunities in the sector.

Q: How can I invest broadly in biotech?

Investors who do not want to put all their eggs in one basket can choose a diversified approach to the innovative biotech sector with index certificates, ETFs or funds.

Q: Are there any interesting biotech companies in Switzerland?

There are a large number of interesting biotech companies in Switzerland. Stocks such as Basilea, Idorsia and Molecular Partner have been listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange for years. But the list is getting longer and longer: BioVersys has also been among the listed biotech companies since the beginning of 2025.

mRNA, CAR-T and CRISPR – the biotech industry is ready to revolutionize medicine – from personalized therapies to groundbreaking vaccines. A future full of opportunities for investors to invest in the innovations of tomorrow.

21 Oct 2025

Jérôme Allet

Head Public Distribution Switzerland – Global Markets Equity Derivatives

Content:

Why biotechnology is so exciting for investors
Return opportunities and risks in the biotech sector
How can you invest in biotech?
Swiss biotech is small but innovative
Frequently asked questions
Summary

The biotech industry is considered one of the most exciting sectors on the capital market, especially after the successes during the pandemic. Technological innovations such as the mRNA process, which led to the rapid development of a coronavirus vaccine, demonstrate the enormous growth potential and crisis resilience of the sector. In addition, the search for solutions for widespread diseases such as Alzheimer’s, diabetes and cancer offers great market opportunities. According to the WHO, the number of tumor diseases will increase by 77% to 35 million per year by 2050.

The biotech sector has been revolutionized in recent years by innovations in genetic engineering, immunotherapy and personalized medicine. The success of COVID-19 vaccine development in particular has put the industry in the spotlight.

Opportunities

Breakthrough in clinical trials: Drug successes can unleash enormous potential. Example: The approvals of the diabetes injection "Ozempic" and the weight loss injection "Wegovy" by Novo Nordisk led to a significant increase in the company's market value. However, sentiment around Novo Nordisk has shifted, and the stock has lost ground again over the past 12 months.
License agreements: Companies can monetize their research results by granting rights to their intellectual property to third parties, which increases sales and growth opportunities.
Digitization: Big data, machine learning and robotics make research, development and production more efficient.
AI as a game changer: Artificial intelligence accelerates drug development, improves the prediction of treatment effects and optimizes clinical studies.

Risks

Drug flops: If a new drug fails in a clinical phase, there is a risk of financial setbacks and a loss of investor confidence. Example: The failure of Roche’s Alzheimer’s drug «Gantenerumab» .
High volatility: The development cycles and the unpredictability of study results lead to above-average fluctuations in biotech shares.
Regulatory uncertainties: Strict approval procedures with regulatory authorities such as the FDA or EMA can lead to rejections or delays, which can mean significant setbacks.

How can you invest in biotech?

Investors can invest in the biotech sector in various ways, with each option offering its own opportunities and risks. The choice of the right strategy depends on individual goals and risk sentiment. The following table shows the most important access points to the biotech sector.

Investment opportunity	Investment opportunity	Description	Description
Investment opportunity	Direct investments via individual securities: Moderna:	Description	The company specializes in the research and development of drugs based on mRNA technology. After an almost three-year study on a particularly malignant type of black skin cancer, the first cancer vaccine could come onto the market in 2025.
Investment opportunity	BioNTech	Description	Following the mRNA vaccines against coronavirus, BioNTech is also planning to develop mRNA vaccines for cancer therapy. A deal with Bristol Myers Squibb in 2025 worth 3.5 billion dollars strengthens BioNTech’s position in oncology. The collaboration focuses on cancer antibodies, with both partners sharing costs, risks and profits.
Investment opportunity	Amgen	Description	Amgen was one of the first companies to use living cells to produce biological drugs. It focuses on innovative therapies in areas such as oncology, hematology and rare diseases.
Investment opportunity	Novartis	Description	The Swiss pharmaceutical group is expanding strongly in the biotech sector through takeovers. Morphosys, Chinook Therapeutics and Mariana Oncology were recently acquired. Morphosys is a German biotech company, Chinook Therapeutics specializes in kidney diseases, and Mariana Oncology develops novel radioligand therapies.
Investment opportunity	CRISPR Therapeutics	Description	Founded in Switzerland in 2013, the biotech company focuses on genome editing technologies for the treatment of genetic diseases.

Investment opportunity	Investment opportunity	Description	Description
Investment opportunity	Passive investment opportunities: ETFs and certificates Open-end tracker on the Bloomberg Transatlantic Top 50 Biotech Index	Description	The Bloomberg Transatlantic Top 50 Biotech Index offers diversified and cost-effective access to international biotech companies. The management fee is 0.50% p.a., and dividends are reinvested net. On 5 July 2025, the index consisted of 39 components.
Investment opportunity	ETFs on the Nasdaq Biotech Index	Description	The ETF providers Invesco and iShares offer products on the Nasdaq Biotech Index. Introduced in 1993, the index comprises 259 healthcare companies and has increased more than twenty-fold since then.

Passive investment opportunities: ETFs and certificates

Open-end tracker on the Bloomberg Transatlantic Top 50 Biotech Index

The Bloomberg Transatlantic Top 50 Biotech Index offers diversified and cost-effective access to international biotech companies. The management fee is 0.50% p.a., and dividends are reinvested net. On 5 July 2025, the index consisted of 39 components.

ETFs on the Nasdaq Biotech Index

The ETF providers Invesco and iShares offer products on the Nasdaq Biotech Index. Introduced in 1993, the index comprises 259 healthcare companies and has increased more than twenty-fold since then.

Investment opportunity	Investment opportunity	Description	Description
Investment opportunity	Active investment opportunities: Funds UBS (Lux) Biotech Equity Fund	Description	The actively managed fund invests in biotech stocks worldwide. Well-founded analyses should generate attractive returns and control risks.

Active investment opportunities: Funds

UBS (Lux) Biotech Equity Fund

The actively managed fund invests in biotech stocks worldwide. Well-founded analyses should generate attractive returns and control risks.

Investing in biotech

Your access to the biotech megatrend: with the tracker certificate, attractive market opportunities can be tapped cost-effectively and efficiently.

More about the tracker certificates

Switzerland as a biotech hub

Although the USA is considered the epicenter of biotechnology, Switzerland has a lot to offer in this area. Switzerland is known for its strong research, a well-connected ecosystem and close collaboration between industry and business. The sector has generally grown over the last 50 years, thanks to large companies such as Novartis and Roche as well as many smaller firms.

Investments and growth

Investments in the Swiss biotech industry rose to CHF 2.5 billion in 2024, an increase of 22% compared to the previous year. Of this, CHF 1.7 billion went to public companies and CHF 0.8 billion to private companies. Alentis Therapeutics and SixPeaks Bio were the largest private financing transactions with CHF 163 million and CHF 102 million respectively.

Companies and innovations

Alentis Therapeutics (with CHF 163 million): developing novel antibodies that target the CLDN1 protein.
SixPeaks Bio (with CHF 102 million): looking for treatments for obesity and metabolic diseases.

IPOs and financing

There were no Swiss IPOs in the biotech sector in 2024, but CRISPR Therapeutics secured follow-up financing of USD 280 million. BioVersys went public on the SIX Swiss Exchange at the beginning of 2025. Established companies on the capital market include Basilea, Idorsia and Molecular Partners.

Frequently asked questions

What makes the biotech sector so attractive for investors?

How does a biotech investment differ from a traditional healthcare fund?

What are the risks of biotech investments?

How can I invest broadly in biotech?

Are there any interesting biotech companies in Switzerland?

Health is always booming, and this also applies to the capital market. The biotech sector, known for successes such as the rapid development of COVID-19 vaccines, offers enormous market opportunities due to technological innovation and the spread of common diseases.

Despite the opportunities, the sector harbors risks such as drug flops and regulatory uncertainties. Investors can invest in individual stocks, tracker certificates or funds. The choice depends on risk sentiment and personal investment objectives. Diversification across various biotech investments can help to minimize the risk.

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Content:

Investing in biotech

Switzerland as a biotech hub

Investments and growth

Companies and innovations

IPOs and financing

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