Taiho Pharmaceutical, a subsidiary of Otsuka Holdings, has agreed to acquire Swiss biotechnology firm Araris Biotech for up to $1.14bn.
The deal involves an upfront payment of $400m upon closure, with potential milestone payments amounting to an additional $740m.
The acquisition is anticipated to conclude in the first half of 2025, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. This move follows a research partnership initiated between the two companies in November 2023.
Araris Biotech, a spin-off from Switzerland’s Paul Scherrer Institute, specialises in developing next-generation antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). These ADCs aim to improve upon existing technologies by offering enhanced design, increased linker solubility, and simplified manufacturing processes.
The company’s proprietary ADC linker platform, AraLinQ, has produced therapeutic candidates that have shown increased safety and antitumor efficacy in preclinical trials compared to traditional ADCs.
Currently, Araris is advancing three preclinical products targeting haematological and solid tumours using its AraLinQ technology. These candidates are expected to enter clinical trials between 2025 and 2026.
Taiho Pharmaceutical, known for its work in antimetabolites and its proprietary small molecule drug discovery platform, Cysteinomix, aims to enhance its oncology portfolio with this acquisition.
The integration of Araris’ ADC technology with Taiho’s existing platforms is expected to bolster the company’s cancer treatment capabilities.
Post-acquisition, Araris will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary, maintaining its research and development operations in Zurich, Switzerland.
Taiho Pharmaceutical president and representative director Masayuki Kobayashi said: “We are very pleased to have entered into this agreement with Araris. AraLinQ is an innovative technology that enables next-generation ADC drug discovery.
“We are confident that the addition of Araris’ knowledge, experience and technology platform in ADC drug discovery, as well as its development pipeline, will lead to further expansion and strengthening of Taiho’s drug discovery capabilities and portfolio.
“Going forward, together with Araris, we will strive to develop innovative drugs that can contribute to patients globally.”
Araris CEO and co-founder Dragan Grabulovski said: “Araris’ unique ADC technology represents a quantum leap for the ADC field, potentially offering precise payload delivery of multiple mechanisms of action simultaneously to the tumour, with less toxicity.
“We are proud to combine with Taiho, our partner since November 2023, whose significant cancer expertise will support us in turbo-charging the clinical development of our potent ADC candidates in haematological and solid tumours.”
