EcoR1 and Casdin/Corvex took their second and third special purpose acquisition corporations public. Also, Ionis sold notes to buy back older notes and fund operations as it cut 70% of Akcea’s staff. In venture capital, ValenzaBio raised $70m and RA boosted Metagenomi’s series A to $75m.

Around 100 executives highlight the hot areas to watch on the R&D front in 2021. From cancer to CNS and from regenerative medicine to real world data, expectations are high on many fronts.

The investment is the latest in Bayer’s series of moves into cell and gene therapy, amid growing industry interest in CAR-NKs.

The last six weeks have seen the acquisition of AskBio, the launch of a dedicated cell and gene therapy unit and a CAR-T pact with Atara. Bayer is taking the space very seriously.