Rapid Bio, a resident of the Skolkovo Foundation (VEB.RF Group), has received the European CE mark – DE/CA09/0170/R26/IVD/001. The express test for Covid-19 antigens became the first Russian-made test to be registered by the European Union.
Rapid-Bio Covid-19 Express Test. Photo: Sk.ru
The company is planning deliveries to the EU in the near future, where the market in volume terms amounts to hundreds of millions of tests per month. Talks are ongoing with distributors in France, Italy, Latvia, Bulgaria, and Finland. The company is initially planning on sending several million tests monthly with plans to scale up into Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia, where the CE mark will speed up getting certification, for which applications have already been submitted.
The Rapid Bio express test detects the presence of the virus within ten minutes using a nasopharynx smear. Thus, the SARS-COV-2 virus antigen is detected through the sample, similar to a PCR test, without requiring additional equipment or laboratory tests.
Arkady Dvorkovich, Chairman of the Skolkovo Foundation: “The Rapid Bio product has already proven its efficacy and that it’s needed in Russia, but entry into the European Union area is the next step towards neutralizing this global threat. The huge capacity of the European market – measured in the hundreds of millions of tests monthly – will allow us to realize the impressive potential of Russian developers of express tests from Skolkovo.”
Anzhey Zhimbiev, CEO of Rapid Bio: “We are very pleased that high-tech, Russian-produced medical devices will become available in the European Union. It is an opportunity to contribute to the fight against the global pandemic and promote the results of scientific work by Russian scientists. Our test is one of the most sensitive and high-quality on the global market. We are thankful for the support from the Skolkovo Foundation, the government of the Republic of Buryatia, the Bortnik Foundation, and all those who helped in developing and promoting the tests on the world market.”
Previously, Rapid Bio, in collaboration with Avivir, registered the first express test in Russia to detect virus-neutralizing antibodies following vaccination against the coronavirus. It can determine within 15 minutes and with 96% accuracy whether or not there is stable immunity to Covid-19.
Additional Information
A non-commercial organization founded in 2010, it functions as the managing company of the Skolkovo Innovation Center. The Foundation's goal is to support technological entrepreneurship in Russia and commercialize the results of scientific research activities.
The number of Skolkovo residents already exceeds 3,000, and the Foundation provides them with an array of necessary services to roll out developments onto the Russian and international markets. Resident status gives a company tax and customs privileges. In 2019, residents’ revenue amounted to over 100 billion rubles, and the amount of investment raised amounted to 13 billion rubles. Since 2019, legislation has allowed any organization conducting research activities in Russia to access the Skolkovo Innovation Center’s services and benefits.
Located at Skolkovo Innovation Center is the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology (Skoltech), listed in the Nature Index “Top-100 Young Universities” list. The Innovation Center infrastructure comprises, among other things, research centers belonging to industrial partners and the largest Technopark in Europe.
In 2019, three new partner R&D centers belonging to Sibur, TMK, and Tatneft opened at the Innovation Center. As a result, a total of 750,000 square meters of residential buildings, research, and educational centers have been put into operation on Skolkovo territory, and extrabudgetary investment in infrastructure exceeds 100 billion rubles.
Development Institutions of the Russian Federation
The Government of the Russian Federation is currently reconfiguring the system for development institutions, allowing for their integration into VEB.RF’s managerial sphere. A centralized investment block is being created at VEB.RF to implement projects that will contribute to achieving the national development goals. The priority of VEB.RF, and the development institutes under its coordination, is to consolidate public and private investment resources towards making a breakthrough in the country’s development and increasing living standards. We participate in the development of the Russian economy together with other development institutions VEB.RF Group: Rusnano, Industrial Development Fund, Russian Export Center, SME Corporation.