Deals
AstraZeneca and CSPC Pharmaceutical Group have already inked two other agreements this year, including an obesity-focused deal in January and one focused on chronic diseases in June.
FEATURED STORIES
Dealmaking across biopharma is shifting dramatically as the SEC rolls out new regulations to ease burdens on newly public companies and antitrust review is replaced by drug pricing as the policy concern du jour.
Dual and even triple or quadruple track processes have come roaring back in 2026 thanks to a glut of M&A that has refilled investors’ wallets. Big Pharma is being put on notice that time is critical if they want to acquire.
While merger and acquisition activity has been robust of late, frequent changes in guidance and leadership at the regulator add risk to any transaction.
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Bristol Myers Squibb and insitro first partnered in 2020 to develop induced pluripotent stem cell models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia. Last December, BMS exercised its option for an ALS target.
The acquisition will give BioCryst an investigational injectable drug for hereditary angioedema, potentially complementing its FDA-approved oral drug Orladeyo.
AviadoBio will have the option to exclusively license UGX-202, a vision-restoring gene therapy for the rare eye condition retinitis pigmentosa.
Novo will add Akero’s efruxifermin to its MASH portfolio, which includes Wegovy after the GLP-1 gained an FDA nod in the indication earlier this year.
The centerpiece of the deal is orelabrutinib, a BTK inhibitor in late-stage development for multiple sclerosis that Biogen once paid $125 million for but abandoned after less than two years of testing.
Takeda wanted to create something new in the cell therapy world by combining the technology with T cell engagers. A series of acquisitions in 2021 started the process.
Regulatory documents show how 89bio’s board pushed Roche hard for a deal valued at $20 per share in upfront and milestone payments.
J&J still holds the top deal of the year by value with its $14.6 billion buy of Intra-Cellular in January, but the next four biggest acquisitions came in the past four months.
The two most historically deal-conservative Big Pharmas have the most money to play with for a major M&A transaction, according to a recent Stifel analysis.
A new analysis from SRS Acquiom puts into perspective the headline values seen when a company announces a backloaded M&A deal. Biotechs have much on the line when they agree to deals with massive potential but little upfront.