BioInnovation Institute has opened its first international base in London to accelerate cardiometabolic research and company creation across Europe.

BioInnovation Institute (BII) has selected Victoria House in London as the location for its first base outside Denmark, marking a significant step in its plans to strengthen cardiometabolic innovation across Europe.

The London hub will become the flagship site for BII’s CardioMetabolic Bridge initiative, a programme backed by the Novo Nordisk Foundation that aims to accelerate the translation of promising cardiometabolic research into biotechnology companies and new healthcare solutions.

The move reflects growing efforts to address one of Europe’s longstanding challenges in life sciences: helping early-stage scientific discoveries progress beyond the laboratory and into commercial development.

Located in London’s Knowledge Quarter, Victoria House will provide BII with access to research institutions, universities, investors and biotechnology companies, supporting collaboration between academic researchers and industry partners.

The CardioMetabolic Bridge initiative has been established to provide researchers with translational support, helping mature technologies, reduce development risks and create new life science companies focused on cardiometabolic disease.

BII said London will serve as the initial hub for the programme before expansion into Germany and Italy as part of a wider European strategy.

Christian Rank, chief development officer at BII, said: “Victoria House places BII at the heart of one of the world’s leading life science ecosystems, giving us direct access to outstanding translational research and the opportunity to turn breakthrough science into companies with real societal impact.”

He added: “BII has demonstrated the strength of its innovation model in Denmark. From Victoria House, we will now apply that proven approach to accelerate promising cardiometabolic research and build the next generation of life science ventures.”

Europe is recognised for producing high-quality cardiometabolic research, but many promising discoveries fail to reach commercial development because of limited translational infrastructure and early-stage innovation support.

Through its London base, BII aims to help bridge that gap by providing laboratory facilities, expertise and venture-building support designed to move scientific discoveries closer to clinical and commercial application.

The organisation believes locating within London’s established life sciences ecosystem will strengthen links between researchers, entrepreneurs and investors while supporting the development of new biotechnology companies focused on cardiometabolic disease.

Miranda Knaggs, corporate development director at Pioneer Group, said the partnership is intended to improve access to infrastructure for early-stage innovators and strengthen collaboration between the organisations.

She said: “Biotech innovators consistently face bottleneck pressures regarding early-stage translational infrastructure. By deeply integrating our teams and embedding BII’s expertise within our high-specification facilities in London’s Knowledge Quarter, we are perfectly positioned to jointly de-risk cardiometabolic science and accelerate the next generation of life-changing therapies from the lab straight to the patient.”

The initiative reflects continued investment in Europe’s life sciences ecosystem, with organisations increasingly focused on supporting translational research and helping scientific discoveries progress towards commercialisation and patient benefit.