Pharma M&A trail continues as Pfizer buys slice of Dutch biotech
pharmafile | May 12, 2015 | News story | Sales and Marketing | Endo, Pfizer, aspen, merger
Pfizer has acquired a minority equity interest in the biotech firm AM-Pharma, and secured an exclusive option to acquire the remaining equity in the company.
And in another pharma deal Dublin-based Endo has acquired a significant portion of the portfolio from a subsidiary belonging to Aspen, one of Africa’s biggest pharma companies.
The Pfizer deal means it will acquire a minority stake in AM-Pharma, a Dutch biopharma company focussed on the preclinical and clinical development of recombinant human alkaline phosphatase (recAP) as a treatment for acute kidney injury, ulcerative colitis, and hypophosphatasia (HPP).
Pfizer paid $87.5 million for the minority equity interest and exclusive option upfront, with additional potential payments of up to $512.5 million for further options and in the event of any product that results from the deal.
Pfizer has also purchased an exclusive option to acquire the remaining equity in the company. The option will kick in once a Phase II trial of recAP in patients with acute kidney injury related to sepsis, the results of which are expected in the second half of 2016. This is a potentially promising market as there are no drugs currently approved for this condition and the only treatment option is dialysis and supportive care.
“Pfizer is committed to advancing the science to address the high unmet medical need in acute kidney injury,” says Mikael Dolsten, president of worldwide R&D at the firm.
“Clinical data for recAP show the potential to uniquely address acute kidney injury in the setting of sepsis, and we look forward to working with our partners at AM-Pharma as we aim to accelerate the development of recAP into a potential first-in-class treatment for patients.”
Erik van den Berg, chief executive of AM-Pharma adds: “This agreement is a significant step for AM-Pharma, and we welcome Pfizer as a shareholder and dedicated partner. This deal not only provides good shareholder value, but provides the next step in the development of recAP as a potential treatment for patients with acute kidney injury and other inflammatory diseases.”
Meanwhile the Irish pharma company Endo has paid $130 million to buy “a broad portfolio of branded and generic injectable and established products focused on pain, anti-infectives, cardiovascular and other specialty therapeutics areas” from a subsidiary of the South African pharma firm Aspen. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of this year.
Endo, which lost out on the sale of Salix to Valeant Pharma earlier in 2015, says the deal will ‘meaningfully expand’ its presence in South Africa. It expects the Aspen products, which generate approximately $28 million of annual revenue, to add as much as 60% to its pharma division’s revenues.
Endo is also hoping to take advantage of a pipeline of nearly 70 products in various phases of development that are expected to launch over the next several years.
“With the acquisition of these products from Aspen Holdings, Endo continues to grow, diversify and optimise its international portfolio and, specifically, further expand its reach into hospital and pharmacy markets in South Africa,” says Rajiv De Silva, president and chief executive of Endo.
“The transaction also continues to build Endo’s R&D pipeline and position the company for future organic growth. We are excited about this opportunity as it furthers Endo’s corporate and M&A strategy.”
Lilian Anekwe
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