Technical challenges and lackluster investor sentiment about the near-term commercial potential of cell and gene therapies in neurological disorders may be holding the field back.

Eli Lilly, striving to outpace Novo Nordisk, dominated the dealmaking scene in 2023 by executing six acquisitions. Although Pfizer, BMS and AbbVie sealed the largest M&A deals of the year, they did not lead in terms of volume.

To emerge from a wilderness period or biotech winter where generalist investors shun the sector, biotech’s good news needs to outweigh the bad and be attractively priced. We may not be there yet.

The biotech sector is so diverse that for every acquisition there will be at least one second-best. Even after years of independence following a drug approval, investors keep hoping that their pharmaceutical Prince Charming will arrive.