Pharma's end-of-year dealmaking flurry is not showing signs of slowing, as, now, two Japanese drugmakers have joined the action with a multibillion-dollar asset transfer agreement.
Monday, Shionogi revealed plans to buy Tanabe Pharma's amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) franchise, comprising the oral suspension Radicava ORS and its intravenous predecessor plus related commercial capabilities. Shionogi expects the deal to add some $700 million in annual global sales once it closes on or after April 1.
Shionogi plans to pay $2.5 billion in a lump sum in exchange for the Radicava operations, plus potential future royalties that are subject to "certain conditions," the company said in today's press release.
After the closing of the deal, the Radicava business unit will be a wholly owned subsidiary of Shionogi.
Crucially, the acquisition will allow Shionogi to add a "strong rare disease commercial platform in the U.S. market," potentially supporting its planned launches in Fragile X syndrome, Jordan’s syndrome and Pompe disease, the company said.
The intravenous formulation of Radicava won FDA approval back in 2017, representing the first new ALS medicine in decades at the time. Five years later, the oral version crossed the regulatory finish line in the U.S.
Shionogi has been busy on the dealmaking front lately, having picked up several "early phase rare disease assets" assets from Japan Tobacco Inc. this month. Before that, the company struck a deal with Swiss biotech BioVersys for a preclinical antibiotic program.
From Tanabe Pharma's perspective, the Shionogi deal comes on the heels of its $3.3 billion sale to Bain Capital. Earlier this year, the company said it would shed "Mitsubishi" from its moniker and operate as Tanabe Pharma.