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Biogen completes $1.15 billion acquisition of HI-Bio to expand immunology business

Posted on by darion

Biogen’s acquisition of HI-Bio’s anti-CD38 monoclonal antibody will expand its presence in immunology. Image credit: Shutterstock / Tada Images.

As Eli Lilly’s Kisunla (donanemab) enters the Alzheimer’s disease market, its main competitor, Biogen, is diversifying its therapies after completing its $1.15 billion acquisition of Human Immunology Biosciences (HI-Bio).

The agreement, which was signed in May this year and includes milestone payments of USD 650 million, envisages strengthening Biogen’s offer with felzartamab, a candidate for a monoclonal anti-CD38 antibody produced by the American company HI-Bio.

Biogen Chief Development Officer Priya Singhal said in a July 2 press release that the company is “very excited” to add felzartamab to its pipeline, adding that Biogen will advance to Phase III trials once the transaction closes.

Felzartamab has already shown positive Phase II data in immune-mediated diseases, including IgA nephropathy (IgAN), antibody-mediated rejection (AMR), and primary membranous nephropathy (PMN). Phase III development plans address all three diseases, according to Biogen.

Felzartamab was originally developed by MorphoSys as a potential competitor to Darzalex (daratumumab), a multiple myeloma drug from Johnson & Johnson and Genmab. After a brief partnership with Celgene in 2013, rights to the antibody were settled with HI-Bio, which licensed it for development outside of China in 2022.

Biogen is known for its focus on neuroscience, having co-developed the next-generation Alzheimer’s drug Leqembi (lecanemab-irmb) with Eisai. The drug is expected to have U.S. sales of $4.6 billion by 2030, according to GlobalData’s Pharma Intelligence Center.

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In a previous earnings call, Biogen CEO Chris Viehbacher said it was important to diversify therapeutics, adding that neuroscience is a “high-risk area.” Eli Lilly has consolidated that — at least in the Alzheimer’s disease space — after winning U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for Leqembi rival Kisunla yesterday (July 2).

Biogen’s “product-in-product” acquisition of HI-Bio will expand the former company’s presence in immunology. According to a press release announcing the deal in May, Biogen will retain employees at HI-Bio and establish a team in the San Francisco Bay Area. At the time, Singhal said felzartamab was a “strategic addition to Biogen’s portfolio” and would “expand (its) product and advance (its) expertise in immunology.”