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The latest CGT changes for innovative businesses are a significant improvement on the original proposal.

A 15-year qualifying window, a three-year minimum holding period and removal of the $10 million lifetime cap are all sensible moves — particularly for industries such as biotech, where value creation rarely fits neatly into a five or ten-year timetable.

But there is still a fundamental issue.

A tax concession designed to encourage investment is only valuable if investors can rely on it.

If an investor qualifies when they put their capital at risk, should they really lose that treatment years later because the company’s activities change, its qualifying status is subsequently lost, or an ongoing compliance requirement is not met?

That is not just a tax issue. It goes directly to how investors price risk.

Consumer-facing health tech and digital health businesses face a different challenge to traditional drug development.

In biotech, the development pathway is often relatively clear: prove the science, progress through clinical development, achieve regulatory milestones and keep funding the business until value is created.

Digital health can be less linear. You may have a working product much earlier, but still need to prove that people will use it, clinicians will trust it, customers will pay for it, and the economics work at scale.

That means the conversation is not just about funding development. It is also about adoption, pricing, customer acquisition, evidence, reimbursement, partnerships and deciding where to put the next dollar.

A useful question for the group is: how do you turn a good health idea into something that people will actually use, pay for and keep using — without running out of money along the way?

1. How much runway is actually enough?

Twelve months of cash doesn’t always mean twelve months of runway.

Clinical timelines slip. Experiments need repeating. Manufacturing takes longer than expected. Regulators ask another question. And the next raise nearly always takes longer than everyone hopes.

For most biotechs, I’d be much more comfortable seeing 18–24 months of cash, particularly if there is an important clinical, regulatory or manufacturing milestone ahead.

The important question isn’t just:

“When do we run out of cash?”

Five things worth talking about if you’re building a biotech and approaching the “valley of death”:

1. How much runway is actually enough?

   Is 12 months really 12 months when trials slip, milestones move and the next raise takes longer than expected?

   
   

2. When do you start raising again?

   If you’ve just closed Series A, when should Series B conversations really begin — and what needs to be true before you go back to investors?

   
   

3. Where should you spend the next dollar?

   
   

Welcome to our group Chaos to Clarity - Finance discussion group! A space for us to connect and share with each other.

From cash runway and fundraising to forecasting, systems, governance and scaling the finance function — a practical forum for comparing notes, sharing experiences and tackling the financial challenges that come with building a biotech.

Real stories are important, so post anonymously if you like!

A group for founders, clinicians, researchers, and ecosystem partners building consumer-facing health tech and digital health products/services.

Welcome to our group Consumer health tech! A space for us to connect and share with each other. Start by posting your thoughts, sharing media, or creating a poll.