Daiichi draws more value from its ADC pipeline via $4B deal with Merck
In wake of AstraZeneca deals, Japanese pharma partners three more ADC candidates, this time in a Merck transaction worth up to $22B
Daiichi Sankyo’s decision to center its development plan around a pipeline of ADCs has again delivered value to the pharma, this time in the form of a deal with Merck that brings in $4 billion up front for most global rights to three clinical products.
The upfront payment is the largest ever for a licensing deal, according to BioCentury’s BCIQ database. Daiichi Sankyo Co. Ltd. (Tokyo:4568) is also eligible for $1.5 billion in near-term payments due within two years, as well as $16.5 billion in sales milestones split equally among the three antibody-drug conjugates, adding up to a total deal value of $22 billion...