News

After its next-generation obesity asset CagriSema lost a head-to-head matchup with Eli Lilly’s Zepbound, Novo Nordisk is throwing more money into the obesity space, striking a deal with Vivtex to advance novel weight loss pills.
FEATURED STORIES
IPO
LB Pharma needed $350 million to advance a promising schizophrenia candidate at a time when the biotech markets were locked up tight. Fortunately, it wasn’t CEO Heather Turner’s first rodeo.
Rare disease drug developers struggle to survive in a biopharma investment market that prioritizes large patient populations. Initiatives like the Orphan Therapeutics Accelerator are attempting to solve what CEO Craig Martin says is not a science problem, but a math problem.
Eli Lilly’s win in a head-to-head trial drove Novo Nordisk’s market cap to pre-Wegovy levels not long after the victor became the first pharma company to top a $1 trillion valuation. It seems one company can do no right, while the other can do no wrong.
Job Trends
FROM OUR EDITORS
Read our takes on the biggest stories happening in the industry.
FDA
Following the FDA’s refusal to review Moderna’s investigational mRNA flu vaccine last week, Commissioner Marty Makary faced questions from the U.S. president about the agency’s handling of vaccines. It’s a clear signal that the tension long brewing at the drug regulator has now gone all the way to the top.
THE LATEST
In a Cabinet meeting, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the website could go live “probably in the next 10 days,” but an exact launch date remains unclear.
Moderna will continue to lead clinical development and manufacturing of the asset, while Recordati will handle commercialization of mRNA-3927, which is under development for the rare metabolic disorder propionic acidemia.
The pact, which could see AstraZeneca ultimately put out $18.5 billion in milestones and sales-based payments, is centered on SYH2082, a long-acting dual agonist of the GLP-1 and GIP receptors.
Despite Sanofi CEO Paul Hudson’s confidence in vaccines, the French pharma has cut at least one mRNA flu shot program.
The FDA is currently reviewing Summit’s PD-1/VEGF bispecific as part of a chemotherapy combo for the treatment of locally advanced or metastatic non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer.
After years of contraction, investors see biotech reentering a growth cycle driven by scientific progress, asset quality and renewed conviction in oncology, obesity and neuroscience innovation.
IPO
Cancer-focused Eikon Therapeutics is seeking $273.5 million in its bid to trade on the Nasdaq, while hair growth specialist Veradermics is looking for $181.1 million in its foray onto the New York Stock Exchange.
AstraZeneca has risen as one of pharma’s most prolific investors in China, including a $630 million pledge last week for full rights to AbelZeta’s cell therapy for cancer.
Sanofi’s vaccine sales dipped 2.5% in 2025, with almost all immunization products declining. Nevertheless, CEO Paul Hudson doubled down on his support for vaccine development.
Roche aims to become a “top three player” in obesity, Teresa Graham, CEO of the group’s Pharma unit, said Thursday during a presentation of the company’s full-year 2025 earnings.