buy-out strengthens start-up communities in Copenhagen Science City
Start-up companies located in the communities COBIS and Symbion can expect better opportunities for networking and more exciting content at events after a recent buyout. Since its inauguration in 2009 Symbion and DTU (Danish Technical University) have owned COBIS together. As of April 1st. 2019 Symbion is the sole owner.By Jes Andersen.
Popular due to location
COBIS is also known as Copenhagen Bioscience Park. With over 100 companies, it houses the largest concentration of biotech and life science companies in Greater Copenhagen, an area that includes eastern Denmark and the south-west of Sweden. It has become hugely popular in part due to a location within walking distance of the university hospital Rigshospitalet, the University College Copenhagen and University of Copenhagen faculties SCIENCE and Health and Medical Sciences. The community houses 9,000 square meters of offices and 2,000 square meters of laboratories.
More collaborators for companies in community
With the buy-out Symbion hopes for increased synergies between their five locations. COBIS joins a family of locations including Symbion, Creators Floor, Univate SC1/Emil Holms Kanal and Univate SC3/Njalsgade. This means that entrepreneurs in all five communities will have a very wide selection of potential collaborators in their immediate network.
With their several companies within biotech and medtech COBIS is a brilliant strategic fit with the rest of the Symbion community. We are convinced that this acquisition will be the first step towards added synergy for companies within the ecosystems,” Brian List, Vice President, Symbion A/S.
Interesting added value
For companies in COBIS the stronger ties to other start-up communities should have several effects. They will get access to a number of services such as a job portal, a Symbion app and a number of house agreements. They will also be invited to a number of events of both a social and professional nature such as pitching events, information meetings about funding opportunities and the legendary Danish Christmas lunches, where many a deal has been struck.
Stronger service organisation
In COBIS the current staff will stay on, and will gradually be augmented with a stronger service organization, while the building and facilities will be put through an ongoing upgrade. The owners behind Symbion AS are The Symbion Foundation, The University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen Business School and a number of private investors.
Building sold last year
In July 2018 DTU and Symbion sold the building that houses COBIS to PensionDanmark, a major Danish pension plan provider. At the time, the technical university told press, that they were selling to liberate funds for a start-up community closer to their own campus in Copenhagen suburb Lyngby.