Mergers & acquisitions
Ocular Therapeutix’s lead asset is Axpaxli, being developed for wet age-related macular degeneration. A Phase III study is underway, with data expected this quarter.
Speaking on the sidelines of the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference, Novo business development executive Tamara Darsow said the company is gunning for obesity and diabetes assets.
Buying vaccine biotech Dynavax was an easy choice for Sanofi despite antivaccine moves by the Trump administration.
AbbVie and Novartis strike billion-dollar pacts while attendees at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference await that one big M&A deal and Merck teases limitless buying capacity; Eli Lilly readies for potential orforglipron launch while Novo Nordisk laments compounders; the IPO window cracks open; and the FDA concludes that GLP-1s do not pose a suicide risk.
There hasn’t been a headline-stealing deal at J.P. Morgan yet. Nevertheless, the mood is positive amid green shoots and a flurry of dealmaking to end 2025.
Merck CEO Rob Davis expressed high confidence during the company’s J.P. Morgan presentation on Monday, revealing that the company is open to deals in the range of “multi tens of billions of dollars.”
Mature biopharma deals are stealing all the headlines, but Bristol Myers Squibb’s Robert Plenge says the company’s deals with insitro, Orbital and more are building the future.
Heightened diligence standards and longer decision timelines for early-stage startups slowed venture activity last year, J.P. Morgan found in a report published ahead of the bank’s annual healthcare conference in San Francisco.
Pharmas will need to provide their latest stance on the Most Favored Nation drug pricing plans, while biotech finally gets a break after a few tough years.
Rumors of a Revolution buyout come as the industry gears up for one of its biggest trade conferences, where observers expect many such deals to be announced.
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