Central European BioForum

⭐ Important Announcement! ⭐

We are pleased to announce that in Lodz - Central Poland has joined as a Silver Partner. The conference will bring together from biotechnology, pharma, medtech, and investment communities to exchange knowledge and explore collaboration opportunities across the life science .

Invest in Łódź is the official investor support office of the City of Łódź, at the centre of the local ecosystem. The organisation supports companies at every stage of establishing and scaling operations in Łódź – providing direct access to the right partners, talent, infrastructure, and public stakeholders, while also supporting employer branding, with a strong focus on LifeSciences.

Based on sector research, the LifeSciences ecosystem in Łódź has been defined across three interconnected layers:

⚛️ R&D core (BioTech & BioChem) – 200+ entities

⚛️ key industries (MedTech, PharmaTech, Beauty, FoodTech) – 1,600+ companies

⚛️ supporting ecosystem – ~14,000 entities

Together, they form one of the largest life science hubs in Poland, supported by:

⚛️ a strong laboratory base and advanced R&D infrastructure

⚛️ ~2,800 in the scientific core

⚛️ ~13,500 across key industries

⚛️ ~70,000 professionals in the wider

Meet Invest in Łódź team at to explore collaboration opportunities and discover how Łódź can support your next LifeSciences project.

🚨 Last call — secure your spot now:

👉 https://cebioforum.com/cebioforum2026_tickets/

❓ Is CEE biotech truly investable — or still misunderstood by global capital?

Central and Eastern Europe is rapidly emerging as a high-potential destination for investment — combining strong scientific talent, capital efficiency, and access to undervalued innovation. Yet despite these advantages, structural barriers continue to limit capital inflow and prevent companies from scaling at pace.

At , this panel will take a candid, investor-first perspective on what it really takes to unlock venture capital across the region.

▶️ “Investing in Biotech: Opportunities & Barriers” will explore:

🧬 what makes CEE biotech companies investable in practice

🧬 risk vs return expectations from an perspective

🧬 key from early-stage funding to exit

🧬 how companies can be actively de-risked to attract capital

🎤 Moderator – Robert Rzemiński (CELON Pharma)

👥 Speakers:

▪️ Tobiasz Jankowski (MCI Capital)

▪️ Wojciech Kula (Axcellant)

▪️ Paweł Przewięźlikowski (Ryvu Therapeutics)

▪️ Piotr Godlewski (FGGH IP)

💡 Our speakers bring a uniquely cross-sectional perspective on the CEE . With decades of experience spanning pharmaceutical development, , private equity, intellectual property, clinical research, and company building, they have collectively shaped investment strategies, scaled biotech , and influenced innovation policy across the region. Their combined track record covers the full lifecycle — from early-stage financing and IP strategy to clinical development and global partnerships.

This is a must-attend discussion for , founders, and decision-makers looking to understand — and capitalize on — the next wave of growth.

🚨 Last call — secure your spot now:

👉 https://cebioforum.com/cebioforum2026_tickets/

📍 Warsaw | April 22–23, 2026

❓ Looking to better understand how to secure funding for breakthrough biotech innovation?

We’re proud to announce that National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR) joins as a Golden Partner — a key institution supporting the growth of the Polish biotech .

ℹ️ During the conference, NCBR will host a dedicated thematic roundtable focused on the STEP instrument, offering practical insights for innovators and companies navigating public funding opportunities.

💡 What will be covered?

▶️ Who is designed for

▶️ Key thematic areas of the instrument

▶️ What makes STEP unique

▶️ What to consider before applying

▶️ The most common in funding applications

The session will be led by Małgorzata Ziemińska, Director of the Commercialization Department at NCBR.

💡 The STEP Biotechnologies calls are implemented under the European Funds for a Smart Economy programme. The STEP initiative is part of the European Union’s broader effort to strengthen strategic autonomy in critical technologies.

⏩ The National Centre for Research and Development will officially launch the STEP Biotechnologies calls on May 8. Critical technologies and their value chains will be developed through R&D projects — covering industrial research and experimental development or development work only — funded by NCBR across two pathways:

🅰️ Path A – for R&D projects introducing an innovative, state-of-the-art, or breakthrough component to the EU internal market with significant economic potential (at least two of these criteria must be met)

🅱️ Path B – for R&D projects contributing to reducing or eliminating the European Union’s strategic dependencies

📆 The application process will open on July 6 and run until September 7, 2026 for Path A, and from July 13 to September 16, 2026 for Path B.

This is a must-attend discussion for anyone planning to scale through public funding mechanisms and better understand how to successfully apply!

📍 Join us on April 22–23 in Warsaw and connect with institutions shaping the future of .

🔗 Secure your tickets now! https://cebioforum.com/cebioforum2026_tickets/

🚨 [Keynote] Our Future is Biotech: Why this $8 trillion industry is just getting started - with Andrew Craig 🚨

We are delighted to announce Andrew Craig as a Keynote Speaker at 🔴

Andrew is a best-selling British author, entrepreneur, investment professional, and founder of personal finance business Plain English Finance.

👤 Andrew began his career at SBC Warburg in the late 1990s. Since then, he has held various senior equity roles at leading investment banks, both in London and New York. From 2015 to 2021, he was a partner at WG Partners LLP, a London-based investment bank specialising in and life sciences.

During his career he has met with the senior management teams of over one thousand companies and with several hundred professional and regularly been involved in high profile stock market transactions.

📈 These have included the Kingdom of Sweden’s sales of Nordea Bank AB in 2013 (totalling $7.6 billion) and the stock market flotation of several dozen companies including the likes of: easyJet, HMV, Burberry, Campari, Carluccio’s, the Carbon Trust, and [lastminute.com](http://lastminute.com/). In his time at WG Partners he acted for more than 60 companies.

📚 Andrew’s first book, *How to Own the World*, has been one of the top-selling personal finance books in the UK for several years, and currently enjoys thousands of reviews across Amazon, Audible and Goodreads. His third book “*Our Future is Biotech”* published globally in August 2024, explores how biotechnology is poised to address critical global in health, sustainability, and economic development.

🎙️ Since founding Plain English Finance, Andrew has appeared in numerous national and specialist financial including: The Telegraph, The Financial Times, The Mail on Sunday, The Mirror, City A.M., The Spectator, Shares and MoneyWeek magazines, YourMoney, This is Money and Money Observer.

👏 Through his writing and public speaking, he advocates for greater public understanding of both and , emphasising the importance of accessible education in both fields.

🗓 Date: April 22–23, 2026

📍 Location: Warsaw, Poland

💡 is the meeting point for leaders, innovators, investors, and scientists shaping the future of biotechnology in Central & Eastern Europe and beyond. Andrew Craig’s keynote will offer a compelling perspective on why biotechnology is not only a scientific revolution - but a defining economic opportunity of our time.

👉 Join us and be part of the ecosystem

🔗 Register here: https://cebioforum.com/cebioforum2026/