Recently, there have been frequent mergers and acquisitions in the global pharmaceutical industry, with pharmaceutical leaders such as Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), Novo Nordisk, and Abbott taking action one after another. Industry insiders point out that this is not an accidental capital impulse, but a strategic necessity for global pharmaceutical companies under multiple pressures such as patent cliffs and intensified market competition. Behind every merger and acquisition, there is an important goal for pharmaceutical companies to complete pipelines and seize track dividends.
Among them, the patent cliff has become a direct driving force for pipeline "filling". Taking Merck as an example, its core product Keytruda is about to face patent expiration, forcing the company to invest over $50 billion in mergers and partnerships between 2024-2025. Similarly, BMS's acquisition of Orbital Therapeutics for $1.5 billion is precisely due to its early layout in the RNA therapy field, attempting to inject new momentum into the tumor pipeline.
It is reported that on October 10th, Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) announced the acquisition of Orbital Therapeutics for $1.5 billion in cash. The core asset it acquired is Orbital's main RNA immunotherapy preclinical candidate drug OTX-201, which is currently in the preparation stage for new drug clinical applications.
It is reported that OTX-201 represents a new treatment mode - in vivo CAR T cell therapy. This therapy includes optimized circular RNA encoding CAR targeting CD19, which is delivered through targeted lipid nanoparticles to directly reprogram immune cells in the patient's body. Compared with traditional in vitro CAR T cell therapy, this innovative approach utilizes the patient's own body as a "manufacturing factory" for CAR T cells, which is expected to significantly reduce treatment burden and improve treatment accessibility. BMS related personnel stated that CAR T in the body represents a novel treatment approach that may redefine the way autoimmune diseases are treated. In addition to OTX-201, BMS will also acquire Orbital's proprietary RNA technology platform, which integrates multiple cutting-edge technologies.
The industry has stated that this "merger for time" strategy has become a common solution for top tier companies to resist the risk of revenue gaps. In addition, the track dividends also attract pharmaceutical companies to focus, further amplifying the heat of mergers and acquisitions. On October 9th, Novo Nordisk announced its acquisition of Akero Therapeutics for up to $5.2 billion, betting on the blue ocean market of metabolic associated steatohepatitis (MASH). With the rapid increase of obesity and diabetes in the world, MASH patients are rapidly expanding.
It is reported that the core objective of Novo Nordisk's acquisition this time is to acquire efruxifemin, a liver disease candidate drug in the later clinical stage under Akero Therapeutics. At present, this candidate drug is in the late stage of clinical trials for the treatment of metabolic dysfunction associated steatohepatitis (MASH), and is an important target for Novo Nordisk to strengthen the cardiometabolic disease pipeline.
Data shows that efruxifemin is a fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) analogue, which works by regulating multiple metabolic pathways and improving multiple pathological stages of MASH. This is precisely the difficulty of treating MASH, as many candidate drugs in the past could only improve steatosis or inflammation and could not effectively reverse liver fibrosis, which is the key to determining patient prognosis. For Novo Nordisk, the significance of acquiring Akero goes far beyond just acquiring a potential drug, but is a crucial step in building a comprehensive treatment plan for metabolic diseases.
The merger and acquisition cases of Bristol Myers Squibb and Novo Nordisk are just a microcosm of the current strategic layout of global pharmaceutical companies. Under the pressure of the patent cliff and the attraction of track dividends, the wave of mergers and acquisitions in the global pharmaceutical industry may continue in the future. For pharmaceutical companies, every merger and acquisition is a choice that combines opportunities and challenges. How to achieve resource integration, technological complementarity, and promote sustainable and healthy development of the enterprise through mergers and acquisitions will be a long-term issue that they need to think about and explore. For the entire pharmaceutical industry, this merger and integration will also accelerate the industry reshuffle, promote pharmaceutical technology innovation and treatment plan upgrading.