German pharmaceutical firm Bayer has acquired US-based gene therapy company Asklepios BioPharmaceutical (AskBio) for a total consideration that could amount to about $4bn.
Under the terms of the agreement, Bayer is expected to make an upfront consideration of $2bn, and pay up to $2bn in potential success-based milestone payments.
The company will gain full rights to AskBio’s gene therapy platform, including a broad intellectual property portfolio and an established contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO).
With the transaction, Bayer is expected to add AskBio’s advanced adeno-associated virus (AAV)-based gene therapy platform to its cell and gene therapy (CGT) business portfolio.
Also, the acquisition is said to strengthen Bayer’s future partnerships in the area of adeno-associated virus (AAV) therapies, and complement its acquisition of BlueRock Therapeutics, in 2019.
Bayer CEO and board of management chairman Werner Baumann said: “In line with our purpose ‘science for a better life’, we are committed to bringing significant improvements for patients through innovation.
“With this acquisition, Bayer significantly advances the establishment of a cell and gene therapy platform that can be at the forefront of breakthrough science, contributing to preventing or even curing diseases caused by gene defects and further driving company growth in the future.”
Bayer will acquire assets, gene therapy technology and manufacturing platform from AskBio
Established in 2001, AskBio is a privately held gene therapy firm, developing the cell line manufacturing process, dubbed Pro10 and adeno-associated virus (AAV) capsid and promoter library.
The company has created a portfolio of clinical programmes across a range of neurodegenerative, neuromuscular and cardiovascular indications.
In addition to various clinical-stage assets, the acquisition includes an advanced gene therapy technology platform along with existing manufacturing platforms.
Closing of the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including receipt of certain customary regulatory approvals, and is planned to be closed during the fourth quarter of 2020.
AskBio will operate as an independent business after closing the transaction.
For the transaction, Credit Suisse serves as financial advisor and Baker McKenzie serves as legal counsel to Bayer, while JP Morgan serves as financial advisor to AskBio, while Ropes & Gray is serving as legal counsel.
AskBio CEO and co-founder Sheila Mikhail said: “Our innovation in capsid re-engineering and promoter design, coupled with our scaled manufacturing processes, gives us the tools to provide gene therapy solutions to more people suffering from a wider spectrum of disease that is not being adequately treated today.
“With Bayer‘s worldwide reach and translational expertise, especially in pathway diseases, our combined cultures of scientific advancement and commitment to patients, along with the retention of AskBio’s independent structure, Bayer and AskBio are positioned to provide accelerated development of gene therapies to treat more patients who can benefit from them.”
