Angelini Pharma, a subsidiary of conglomerate Angelini, agreed yesterday to buy Arvelle Therapeutics, a central nervous system (CNS) disorder drug developer spun off by pharmaceutical company Axovant, for up to $960m.
The deal will involve a $610m upfront payment, with up to $350m in additional capital to be paid should Arvelle’s epilepsy drug, cenobamate, achieve certain revenue targets.
Arvelle was formed in 2019 to commercialise cenobamate to treat drug-resistant focal-onset seizures. The company expects to secure approval from the European Medicines Agency for the drug later this year, and it has received Promising Innovative Medicine designation by the UK’s MHRA.
Cenobamate was originally licensed from pharmaceutical firm SK Biopharmaceuticals, which will sell its 12% stake in Arvelle to Angelini as part of the transaction. Arvelle closed $208m in series A equity funding and project financing in May 2020.
Investment and financial services group Fidelity’s F-Prime Capital subsidiary joined KB Investments, Andera Partners, BRV Capital Management, NovaQuest and HIG BioHealth Partners in the series A portion of the round.
SK Biopharmaceuticals’ chief executive, Jeong Woo Cho, said: “We are delighted to start a new working relationship with Angelini Pharma that will enable all of us to move a step forward in launching cenobamate in Europe as we have promised to the epilepsy community.
“This marks the beginning not only of a new relationship with Angelini, but also the year of our European entry. SK Biopharmaceuticals will continue its efforts with our partners to provide a new treatment option to patients worldwide.”
Centerview Partners is financial adviser to Arvelle on the deal while Sidley Austin and NautaDutilh are providing legal counsel. White & Case (Europe) is legal counsel for Angelini Pharma and KPMG is overseeing due diligence tax and accounting.
