covid vaccine approvals could be granted at the end of this year or early next year, according to news agency Reuters. The official asserted that the regulator won't be less thorough when evaluating covid-19 vaccine applications.Today, German biotech firm BioNTech, which is developing covid vaccines with Pfizer, said it had secured almost $450 million in government funding to speed up work on its COVID-19 vaccine candidate and expand its production capacity in Germany.BioNTech and partners Pfizer Inc are among the leading developers of experimental COVID-19 vaccines, based on molecules carrying a genetic code called messenger RNA (mRNA).Earlier this month, fellow German biotech firm CureVac said it had been awarded 252 million euros in.