Updated: 26 March 2025

Top 15 Biotech and Pharmaceutical Companies in the UK

Explore the latest trends in biotech and pharmaceutical companies in the UK, including investment and incorporation/cessation trends.

Words John McCrea

Top 15 Biotech and Pharmaceutical Companies in the UK

A look at the state of biotech and pharmaceutical companies in the UK tells a complicated story. The first quarter of 2025 has seen a spectacular drop in the number of active companies from 7,284 in Q4 2024 to 7,067 in Q1 2025. And with Q4 2024 seeing a record number of cessations in biotech and pharma companies (166) — it’s a disturbing look.

On the flip side, biotech and pharma companies are coming off a record year of investment in 2024 with £2.94b equity raised, bucking the trend of broader downturns in the investment market.

Putting this in context, these figures even eclipse 2021’s £2.80b investment numbers. Of course, companies operating in biotech and pharma need to raise more equity on average than other types of startups — this is due to the upfront costs associated with the research and clinical trials necessary to achieve a viable product.

As it stands, the UK boasts the position as Europe’s top biotech hub, particularly when it comes to startup funding in the biotech and pharmaceuticals sectors. These industries also take the lead in academic spinouts, with their rigorous research and testing processes aligning seamlessly with the university commercialisation model.

Our latest research, Spotlight on Spinouts 2025, shows that UK pharmaceutical companies represent the largest proportion of academic spinouts by far, with 399 companies out of a total 2,064 spinouts incorporated since 2011.

In this article, we’ll explore the UK’s most successful pharmaceutical and biotech companies, ranking the top 15 based on the amount of equity funding they have secured to date. You can also download a PDF report of the top 100 companies right now.

Spotlight on Spinouts 2025

The fifth edition of Spotlight on Spinouts provides a comprehensive analysis of the 1,609 active UK spinouts.

What is a biotech company?

Biotechnology companies are at the forefront of innovation, using the power of living organisms, including DNA, to craft a diverse array of products and services.

While biotech companies’ primary sphere of activity lies within the healthcare industry, by developing life-saving medicines and therapeutic solutions — including gene therapies and vaccines— the scope of their impact extends far beyond this.

Biotech firms also venture into the realm of agriculture and environmental sustainability, contributing to the creation of eco-friendly products like biofuels and genetically engineered crops, which address pressing global challenges.

Many biotechnology giants have earned recognition for their groundbreaking work. These include:

Oxford Nanopore, with their cutting-edge DNA sequencing technologies
Moderna, a frontrunner in mRNA vaccine development
Immunocore, specialising in T-cell receptor therapies
BioNTech, co-developer of the pioneering Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine

These trailblazers are shaping the future with their transformative and life-enhancing innovations across various fields.

What is a pharmaceutical company?

Pharmaceutical enterprises are known for their development of medical solutions, primarily through chemicals and synthetic compounds.

These companies often distinguish themselves through their substantial size and comprehensive scope, setting them apart from their biotechnology counterparts. Within the pharmaceutical landscape, mammoth corporations such as Novartis and Johnson & Johnson dominate the field, exemplifying the significant scale that big pharma companies operate at.

The core pursuit of pharmaceutical firms revolves around the research, development, and production of pharmaceutical drugs designed to treat an extensive range of medical conditions. This includes everything from over-the-counter remedies to complex prescription medications, catering to the diverse healthcare needs of a global population.

These companies facilitate access to a wide array of therapeutic options, contributing significantly to the improvement of public health. Their vast R&D budgets, coupled with extensive clinical trials, have paved the way for numerous life-changing drugs that have revolutionised the treatment of various diseases.

These organisations wield the resources and expertise necessary to navigate the complex regulatory landscape, ensuring that their innovative products reach the market and make a substantial impact on patient care, whilst mitigating the risks associated with novel treatments and newer drugs.

Methodology

To create our top 15 ranking, companies must meet these criteria:

Be headquartered in the United Kingdom
Listed as ‘Active’ on Companies House
Fall under either Beauhurst’s Biotechnology and Pharmaceuticals industries criteria.

We’ve then ranked these companies by equity raised.

All data for this article was taken from the Beauhurst platform and was accurate as of 21 March 2025.

The UK’s top 15 biotech and pharmaceutical companies

London-based biotech, Pulmocide, develops inhaled medicines designed to treat serious respiratory infections.

The company, which has received over £181m in equity investment across nine fundraisings, has a post-money valuation of £163m following its most recent raise in January 2024.

Gyroscope Therapeutics develops gene therapies to tackle age-related macular degeneration. Founded in 2016 as an academic spinout from University of Cambridge, the company was acquired by Swiss-based pharmaceuticals firm Novartis in 2022 for £588m.

Prior to this, the company had raised a total of £194m in fundraisings, secured a £373k innovation grant from InnovateUK, and acquired US-based pharmaceutical firm Orbit Medical in 2019.

And with a total of 16 patents granted globally, Gyroscope Therapeutics is another example of the UK’s golden triangle producing innovative life sciences businesses.

Quell Therapeutics develops Treg (T-regulatory) cell therapies for the treatment of severe immune and inflammatory diseases.

Another academic spinout — from both King’s College London and University College London — Quell Therapeutics has raised a total of £198m in fundraisings, plus one grant.

Both the grant and the company’s latest fundraising came from AstraZeneca, in order to support development of its T-regulatory cell therapies pipeline.

TauRx Pharmaceuticals is developing a treatment which aims to cure Alzheimer’s and dementia. A spinout from University of Aberdeen, TauRx has raised £209m in equity.

Its latest round in November 2022, worth £101m, was to support regulatory submission to the MHRA and its go to market strategy.

Orchard Therapeutics is a gene therapy company targeting rare, life-threatening conditions. The business was spun out from University College London and University of Manchester, and has since raised over £221m in equity across three fundraisings. It has also secured £20.4m in R&D grants, including support from Innovate UK.

The company listed on the NASDAQ stock market in 2018 with a $225m (£177m) IPO, and in 2023, Orchard reported £15.8m in turnover.

Cambridge-based Apollo Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company developing therapies for cancer, inflammatory conditions, and rare diseases. Founded in 2015, the business underwent a management buyout in 2021, and has since raised £221m in equity investment.

A spinout from both University College London and University of Cambridge, Apollo’s research-led approach has attracted major backers including UK-based M&G Investments.

The company’s latest financial statement reported a record £2.48m in turnover in 2023.

Kymab develops human monoclonal antibody therapeutics using its proprietary IntelliSelect® platform. Based in South Cambridgeshire, the company has raised £225m across eight fundraisings and secured one £7.39m R&D grant prior to its acquisition.

A biotech backed by investors including the Wellcome Trust and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Kymab was acquired by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi in April 2021. Before its exit, the company reported a peak of £15.2m in turnover in 2020.

Spur Therapeutics, formerly known as Freeline Therapeutics, develops gene therapies for the treatment and prevention of bleeding disorders.

The company spun out from University College London in 2016 and has since raised £233m in equity across seven fundraisings, alongside five innovation grants worth £2.45m. The business completed a $159m (£121m) IPO on the NASDAQ Stock Market in 2020.

Artios Pharma is a biotech firm developing targeted cancer treatments that exploit DNA Damage Response (DDR) pathways. Headquartered at Babraham Research Campus near Cambridge, the company has raised £245m across five equity rounds, attracting backing from global investors including Pfizer Ventures, Novartis Venture Fund, and Andera Partners.

Based on its latest fundraising in July 2021, worth £111m, the company has a post-money valuation of £242m.

BenevolentAI combines artificial intelligence and biomedical science to accelerate drug discovery. The company’s platform uses machine learning to analyse vast datasets of scientific literature, clinical trials, and biomedical data to uncover novel drug targets.

Headquartered in Camden, the company raised £253m over six fundraisings, and in 2022 was acquired by Odyssey Acquisition as part of the largest ever European SPAC merger.

F2G develops antifungal treatments for life-threatening infections. The company spun out of the University of Manchester in 2008 and has since raised £283m across 11 fundraisings. It has also secured £3.33m in R&D grants, including support from Innovate UK and European funding bodies.

Its most recent fundraising, a £48.9m round in 2024, was backed by a number of leading life sciences investors and was designed to complete late-stage development, seek regulatory approval, and prepare for commercialisation in the US.

Exscientia uses artificial intelligence to design millions of potential small molecule drugs. It then uses this data to predict their potency and effects, providing indications of which molecules are most likely to make successful drugs.

Before the University of Dundee spinout exited, it had raised £300m in equity across seven rounds, and received three grants worth £5.40m. Exscientia also made two acquisitions prior to its IPO, Allcyte and Kinetic Discovery.

The youngest company on this list, Verdiva Bio is a seed-stage biotech company developing cardiometabolic pharmaceuticals to treat obesity and related disorders.

Founded in Guildford in mid-2024, the company raised £140m in a landmark first fundraising in January 2025, with a 77.8% stake taken.

Immunocore is a biotech firm developing novel therapeutics for cancer, viral infections, and autoimmune diseases using its T cell receptor (TCR) technology. A spinout from the University of Oxford, the company has raised £410m in equity across 12 rounds and secured £2.4m in R&D grant funding.

Immunocore completed a $258m (£189m) IPO on the NASDAQ Stock Market in February 2021. The company remains headquartered at Milton Park, Oxfordshire. And in 2023, its latest financial statement, Immunocore reported £239m in turnover.

Bicycle Therapeutics is developing precision medicines using proprietary bicyclic peptides for the treatment of cancer and other serious conditions.

The company was spun out from the University of Cambridge in 2009 and has since raised £673m across seven equity rounds and secured £5.25m in R&D grants.

Bicycle Therapeutics listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market in May 2019, raising $60.7m (£47.9m) through its IPO. In 2024, it raised a further £425m to advance its high-priority programs and further develop early-stage discovery projects. This saw the company valued at over £1.15b post-money.

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John McCrea

Content Associate

John is a Content Associate at Beauhurst, bringing you the latest insights and emerging trends across the UK's high-growth economy. His history as a content writer prior to Beauhurst spans industries including financial services, cyber security, and renewables. In his spare time, you'll invariably find John with a book or pen in hand, reviewing the latest books from independent publishers, and running interviews at some of the UK's most vibrant book festivals.

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