Where Capital Goes When Everything Changes: Industry Perspectives on Investment Reality
Day 2 Global Pharma Outlook Stage
07/10/2026 11:05 - 11:50am
Contributors
Alan Mackay : Managing Partner/Co-Founder - GHO Capital Ltd
Investment patterns across pharmaceutical manufacturing are shifting faster than most realise. While capital remains available, the rules for where it flows—and why—are being rewritten by geopolitical tensions, regulatory demands, and operational constraints. Different players see different opportunities in the same disrupted landscape.
Discussion Points:
Technology Disruption Reshaping Invest ability
AI has become the top investor question, fundamentally altering which sectors remain attractive. Medcoms has shifted from investable to structurally challenged, while private equity pivots rapidly across segments seeking returns despite regulatory fragmentation and technology disruption.
Manufacturing Geography as Investment Hedge
Location is now an investment criterion. Concentrated regional footprints face sudden tariff exposure—Ireland-only CDMOs could see 15% cost increases overnight versus competitors with transatlantic flexibility. Capacity is also becoming selective, prioritising execution quality over availability.
Market Access Economics and Regional Pricing Tensions
Innovative drugs increasingly launch exclusively in the US to avoid Most Favoured Nation pricing triggers. With US reimbursement 100x higher than Europe, the business case is clear—but European patients may lose access unless governments pay US prices.