Target
Deal Size
Buyer
On July 8th, pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly announced its acquisition of biotechnology company Morphic Therapeutic for $3.2 billion in cash, drawing widespread attention. The acquisition comes with a 79% premium and is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2024. Lilly’s main goal in this acquisition is to obtain MORF-057, an oral α4β7 integrin inhibitor being developed by Morphic, signaling a further deepening of the company’s strategic positioning in the inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) treatment field.
α4β7 integrin is a key target for IBD treatment. Takeda’s Entyvio (vedolizumab), an intravenous α4β7 integrin inhibitor, is approved for the treatment of ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease and is currently leading the market. However, with the development of next-generation products, especially with oral formulations, the competitive landscape in this field is changing.
The emergence of oral formulations in the IBD market can improve patient compliance, becoming a key advantage for Lilly and other companies developing oral drugs. Also, α4β7 integrin inhibitors face potential threats from other emerging treatments, such as αEβ7 and TL1A inhibitors.
Peter Zhang
Partner, YAFO Capital
Target
Deal Size
Buyer
7月8日，制药巨头礼来宣布以32亿美元现金收购生物技术公司Morphic Therapeutic，引起广泛关注。此次收购溢价高达79%，预计将于2024年第三季度完成。礼来此举的主要目标在于获得Morphic正在开发的口服α4β7整合素抑制剂MORF-057，这标志着公司在炎症性肠病治疗领域的战略布局进一步深化。
α4β7整合素是炎症性肠病治疗的关键靶点。武田制药的Entyvio（vedolizumab）作为静脉注射给药的α4β7整合素抑制剂，已获批用于治疗溃疡性结肠炎和克罗恩病，在市场上占据领先地位。然而，随着新一代产品的研发，特别是口服制剂的出现，这一领域的竞争格局正在发生变化。
口服形式给药可以提高患者的依从性，成为礼来和其他开发口服制剂公司的关键优势。α4β7整合素抑制剂还面临其他潜在威胁。如αEβ7以及TL1A抑制剂，也正在崭露头角。
Peter Zhang
Partner, YAFO Capital
1. Summary of the week
From July 5 to 12, a total of 13 licensing and cooperation agreements were finalized globally, with 4 deals emerging from the China Biotech Industry. Keymed Biosciences and Belenos Biosciences signed an out-licensing agreement for two pre-clinical stage assets valued at $185 million. Foreseen Biotechnology and Ipsen also secured an out-licensing deal for a pre-clinical stage asset, totaling $1,030 million. AFT Pharmaceuticals and Hainan Haiyao signed an in-licensing agreement for the approved asset Crystaderm. Additionally, a domestic deal was made between InnoventBiologics and IASO Bio for the approved drug FUCASO® (EquecabtageneAutoleucel).
On the global front, 9 deals were concluded this week. The most notable agreement was between Ensol Biosciences and Spine BioPharma for the licensing of Vicatertide, amounting to $155 million.
7月5日到12日，全球共达成13项资产授权与合作交易。中国医药市场有4项交易，包括2项出海交易、1项引进交易和1项国内交易。康诺亚向Belenos Biosciences授权两款临床前双抗资产，总价值1.85亿美元+30.01%股权；昱言生物向Ipsen授权一款临床前ADC资产，总价值10.3亿美元；海南海药引进AFT Pharmaceuticals皮肤科药物Crystaderm®；以及信达生物与驯鹿生物就已获批药物伊基奥仑赛达成合作。
国际市场上，共签署了9项资产授权与合作交易。其中最值得关注的交易是Ensol Biosciences与Spine BioPharma之间就后者的Vicateride达成的授权合作，总金额1.55亿美元。
2. Licensing Deals
2a. China section
2b. Global section
3. M&A Deals
4. Top Deals of the year 2024
5. 2019-2023 China Innovative Drug Licensing Transactions
ABOUT YAFO CAPITAL
雅法资本成立于2013年，作为新型投资和投行咨询机构，致力于中国及海外生物医药项目的投融资、资产跨境交易和资产孵化等。旗下雅法基金联合药企进行资产投资和并购，雅法全球医疗专注于医药产品跨境及国内授权交易。基于雅法在全球广泛的人脉与资源网络，在过去十年成功推进了大量的海外项目进入中国市场并协助多个中国产品完成海外授权。雅法拥有经验丰富的全球交易团队，覆盖美国、日本 、欧洲等全球主要医药创新区域。核心合伙人均为华尔街资深投行人士或具有跨国药企经历，为客户交易提供强力支持。雅法总部位于上海，在美国、欧洲、东南亚等地均设有分部。雅法在生物医药跨境授权及并购业务交易数量连续多年排名第一。
Founded in 2013, YAFO Capital is a Shanghai based boutique investment and advisory firm, with professional team in our China, U.S., EU and SEA offices. Partnering with Pharmaceutical companies, YAFO Fund mainly invests in global assets. YAFO Life Sciences is a leading advisory boutique focused on asset transactions. YAFO has built a strong proven track record and closed dozens of in-licensing and out-licensing transactions with global pharma and biotech companies. Over the past five years, YAFO has been ranked as the No. 1 advisor for China cross border licensing transactions. For more information, please visit http://www.yafocapital.com
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