Genmab is the largest biotech company by market capitalization, with Danish roots, and has operations in Utrecht, the Netherlands, the US, and Japan. The company was founded in 1999 and went public in 2000, raising DKK 1.56 billion – a record IPO for a European biotech company at the time. Openness and a willingness to collaborate are two of the key fundamental elements driving the ongoing success of Genmab.
Jan van de Winkel – © Genmab
CEO Jan van de Winkel: “We, as a company, focus primarily on cancer, because it is a disease with very significant medical needs. We have a very good track record in the cancer therapeutics field. […] and we believe that we need to focus and stick to that disease area.” The company has always been open to collaboration and currently has 17 key partnerships in place: six pharma and eleven biotech partnerships. “We are very open-minded and are open to interacting with other companies and other industries. It’s embedded in the DNA of Genmab,” asserts Van de Winkel.
From the outset, Genmab had a solid R&D base in Utrecht at the Utrecht Science park, close by the university. “It’s a great university, with a fantastic immunology department,” explains Van de Winkel. “There is also the Hubrecht Laboratory and several hospitals such as the Princess Maxima Center for pediatric oncology, the UMCU – one of the largest hospitals in the Netherlands, and of course Utrecht University; the largest research university in the Netherlands. So, it is a perfect innovation ecosystem and a wonderful place for a biotech company to have an innovative R&D base. […] There is also a great willingness to work together with academic teams and with other companies, and I think that’s unique to this innovation ecosystem. This eagerness to communicate and connect is one of the central reasons that we are so successful up until now.”
Read on the website of Invest in Holland the complete interview with Van de Winkel.
