Deals
Spero Therapeutics is putting over $1 billion on the line in exchange for rights to develop SP001, an anti-CD40L antibody, for IgG4-related disease. A Phase 2 study is planned for the second quarter of 2027.
FEATURED STORIES
After debuting on the public markets with $256.3 million and raking in an additional $472 million, Veradermics has emerged as one of biotech’s biggest post-IPO standouts. CEO Reid Waldman credits the weight loss craze for establishing consumer-driven channels.
The total of 52 mergers and acquisitions for the first half of 2026 reflects what analysts, industry watchers and executives are saying over and over: M&A is back.
Dealmaking across biopharma is shifting dramatically as the SEC rolls out new regulations to ease burdens on newly public companies and antitrust review is replaced by drug pricing as the policy concern du jour.
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Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ acquisition of Crinetics Pharmaceuticals is the largest pickup in the company’s history, according to analysts at BMO Capital Markets.
With the latest round, Roche’s Genentech will have racked up nearly 450 layoffs in California over the last year amid ongoing restructuring. At the same time, the biotech is joining forces with Astex Pharmaceuticals in a deal that could surpass $490 million.
The centerpiece of the acquisition is Myricx Bio’s novel N-myristoyltransferase inhibitor payload platform, which could help Novartis develop antibody-drug conjugates that can overcome the limitations of existing therapies.
AstraZeneca and CSPC Pharmaceutical Group have already inked two other agreements this year, including an obesity-focused deal in January and one focused on chronic diseases in June.
Ipsen is penning its second acquisition of the week, this time securing Memo Therapeutics and its midstage monoclonal antibody in a deal that could approach $800 million.
The vibe at BIO 2026 in San Diego last week was overwhelmingly positive, with attendees observing noticeable changes at the FDA and an uptick in dealmaking and IPOs. Plus, a top medical journal this week retracted a pivotal study for Amgen’s rare disease drug Tavneos, which has been in the FDA’s crosshairs since January.
Investment firm Deerfield Management is the latest to find a gem in China, which has been rising as a source of biotech innovation over the past few years.
Zymeworks announced a new plan to become a royalty-driven company last year, making Theravance a perfect match.
The star of Ipsen’s acquisition is an MDM2 blocker being proposed as an add-on therapy to ruxolitinib for myelofibrosis. The drug could be available to patients “as early as 2028,” according to Ipsen CEO David Loew.
The company is “especially excited” about an immune cell therapy manufacturing technology included in the deal, a Merck KGaA executive said.