The German Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, Peter Altmaier, and Dietmar Hopp, SAP co-founder and co-founder of the investment company dievini Hopp BioTech holding GmbH & Co. KG, announced today that the Federal Republic of Germany will invest 300 million Euros in the biopharmaceutical company CureVac AG, a pioneer in the preclinical and clinical development of mRNA-based drugs.
The funds from the capital increase will be used by CureVac for the further development of the Company’s proprietary pipeline and mRNA platform technology and the expansion of business activities. Under the agreement, the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) will hold a stake of around 23 percent in CureVac.
Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, Peter Altmaier, says:
“CureVac’s technology has the potential to develop disruptive new vaccines and therapeutic modalities that are accessible for many people and available via the market. The German Federal government has decided to invest in this promising company because it expects that this will accelerate the development programs and provide the means for CureVac to harness the full potential of its technology. This is also of high importance for industrial policy as we in Germany and Europe need these essential research results and technologies. At the same time, today’s move is a first and important implementation of the comprehensive Corona Economic Stimulus and Future Technologies Package, which was agreed on by the Federal Government on 03 June 2020. With this package, we aim to secure more independence in the entire production process of medical substances and vaccines. This investment is a first step in this direction.”
mRNA company CureVac retains complete operational and strategic independence, the Federal Government will not influence corporate policy decisions.