The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC) celebrated its first birthday last week with the announcement that it has so far “invested $46 million in state funding, leveraged an additional $357 million in private and federal investment, and is helping to create a projected 950 jobs in companies, research institutions, and in the building trades” (see Boston Globe coverage here). The MLSC is a quasi-public agency tasked with implementing the Massachusetts Life Sciences Act of 2008, which calls for Massachusetts to invest up to $1 billion in the life sciences over ten years with about one-fourth of that amount going towards direct assistance from the MLSC to companies in the form of equity investments, grants or loans. The actual amount available each year for direct assistance must be approved as part of the Commonwealth’s annual budget, and the budget for FY 2010, which begins July 1, 2009, has not been set.
The MLSC’s “flagship investment program” is the Accelerator Program, which provides loans of up to $500,000 to early-stage companies engaged in life sciences research and development, commercialization and manufacturing. The first round of Accelerator loans was announced in April, with an aggregate of $3.4 million awarded to seven life sciences companies. The MLSC has not yet announced how or when awards will be determined in FY 2010, but timelines and applications for funding will eventually be available on the MLSC website.
With private sources of financing particularly difficult to come by these days, the MLSC could be a valuable lifeline for a young life sciences company. To be eligible to receive funding from the MLSC, a company must satisfy certain criteria, including demonstrating (1) that it has sufficient business contacts in Massachusetts, (2) its potential to further technological advancement in the life sciences or offer a breakthrough medical treatment for a particular disease or medical condition, and (3) its potential for leveraging additional funding or attracting additional resources to the Commonwealth. Eligibility is determined at the time an initial application for funding is submitted, but once confirmed is valid for five years.
Tags: Financing, Massachusetts
Tags: Financing, Massachusetts