Miquel Vila-Perelló, CEO of SpliceBio: a scientist back home

Miquel Vila-Perelló wanted to participate in what was happening in Barcelona at the beginning of the last decade. From the distance of Princeton University, he realized that Catalonia's nascent biomedical ecosystem was beginning to promise a future, and he wanted to contribute to writing its history. This week, the Barcelona-born scientist realized those aspirations—at least in part. SpliceBio, the company he co-founded and co-CEO of, has closed the largest biotechnology financing round in Spain with €119 million ($135 million).

His journey doesn't stop there. "My desire to return was largely about giving back to society what it had given me. I've been a beneficiary of public scholarships throughout my career, and I want to give something positive back to society. In this case, a medicine," he explains. The startup he leads is developing an experimental drug for Stargardt disease, a rare, degenerative condition with no treatment that causes blindness. Between Europe and the US, there are an estimated 180,000 patients. The company's compound, whose official name is SB007, is now entering Phase I/II clinical trials, so there's still a long way to go before it can be used in everyday clinical practice.

SpliceBio has become one of the best exhibitors at the Barcelona biomedical hub.

Vila-Perelló (Barcelona, ​​1977) wanted to be a scientist from a very young age. Perhaps it was the influence of his father, a chemist in a veterinary laboratory, or his attraction to science fiction literature (he's a great connoisseur of the Dune saga), but the path seemed paved for him from his earliest years. "When I defended my doctoral thesis, my parents recovered an old notebook from when I was little in which I had already written about it," the entrepreneur recalls. "Probably throughout that childhood, I was very aware of all the hours of work and study that this path entailed," he adds ironically.

With a degree and PhD in organic chemistry from the University of Barcelona (UB), Vila-Perelló received the opportunity of a lifetime in 2005. He embarked on his postdoctoral studies at Rockefeller University in Tom Muir's research group. His basic science studies focused on the use of inteins, a segment of proteins, to modify others. "I left for two years and ended up staying for ten. Six of those years in New York, which is now a second home to me," he recalls. In 2011, he received a research fellowship to open Muir's laboratory at Princeton.

The foundation stone of SpliceBio was laid in Barcelona in 2014 under the name ProteoDesign. “I was clear that the project only made sense in Barcelona. Starting a business requires a lot of effort, and I wanted to be close to my family. I started talking with two friends of mine, Silvia Frutos and Marc Montserrat, and together with Muir, we founded the company.” After attending a bioentrepreneurship course, Vila-Perelló explains that the company was founded with contributions from partners, mini-loans from Caixa Capital Risc, and Torres Quevedo scholarships. “It wasn't like starting the company in a garage, but close. I think the sector has matured a lot and become more professional,” he explains.

The company crossed the valley of death with the entry of Caixa Capital Risc and, in 2020, refocused with Ysios Capital and Asabys Partners. "We had analyzed different therapeutic areas such as immuno-oncology, but we focused on gene therapies," he says. In total, it has raised more than 170 million euros in its history.

SpliceBio has become one of the best exhibitors at the Barcelona biomedical hub. It's a company capable of attracting international talent, funded by international funds, and with unique technology. Vila-Perelló is satisfied with the hub's evolution. "When we arrived, the Barcelona Science Park had half its space empty. Now, it's expanded, and there's a waiting list of companies looking for space. Our hub isn't Boston or San Francisco, but we're doing things right to start the virtuous cycle."