Bausch Health Acquires Synergy Pharmaceuticals' GI Assets for $195 Million to Bolster Salix Portfolio

Bausch Health, founded in 1960 and headquartered in New York, USA, is a specialized pharmaceutical company dedicated to advancing global health. The company focuses on dermatology, infectious diseases, gastroenterology, neurology, and ophthalmology, and owns Bausch + Lomb, the world’s largest supplier of eye health products. Additionally, Bausch Health includes well-known subsidiaries such as Salix Pharmaceuticals, which specializes in gastrointestinal therapies, and Ortho Dermatologics, which focuses on dermatological conditions.

VCBeat (WeChat Official Account: vcbeat) learned from foreign media that on March 6, U.S. local time, Bausch Health announced the acquisition of certain assets of the biopharmaceutical company Synergy Pharmaceuticals for $195 million.

It is reported that this acquisition by Bausch Health is primarily intended to expand the gastrointestinal disease business of its subsidiary, Salix Pharmaceuticals. Salix Pharmaceuticals is a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the prevention and treatment of gastrointestinal diseases. Following this acquisition, Synergy Pharmaceuticals’ flagship product, TRULANCE (plecanatide), will be directly added to Salix Pharmaceuticals’ product portfolio, and Synergy’s other candidate product, dolcanatide, will also be integrated into Salix’s R&D pipeline. Meanwhile, former members of Synergy’s team will join the Salix team.

Synergy Pharmaceuticals, founded in 1992, is a pharmaceutical company based in New York, USA, specializing in the research and development of drugs for gastrointestinal (GI) disorders. The company pioneered the development of GI therapeutics centered on uroguanylin analogs. Currently, Synergy’s GI R&D platform has yielded two products: TRULANCE (plecanatide), a commercially available product indicated for patients with chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC) and irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C); and dolcanatide, an investigational candidate indicated for patients with opioid-induced constipation (OIC) and ulcerative colitis (UC). Both products are now being acquired by Bausch Health, enriching its core GI business portfolio and driving its growth.

Bausch Health was formerly known as Valeant Pharmaceuticals. The independent revenue of Bausch + Lomb, a subsidiary under Valeant Pharmaceuticals, consistently accounted for more than half of Valeant Pharmaceuticals’ total revenue. On July 16, 2018, in response to public sentiment, Valeant Pharmaceuticals was renamed Bausch Health. The company’s strategic focus also shifted from “Pharmaceuticals” toward “Health.”

Currently, Bausch Health has more than 100 marketed products and over 30 products in development. Bausch Health manufactures and sells generic drugs, over-the-counter (OTC) medications, as well as medical devices such as ophthalmic surgical equipment and intraocular lenses in more than 90 countries worldwide, including the United States, Canada, and China. Bausch Health’s products are used by up to 150 million people globally.

Since its inception, Bausch Health has completed 24 acquisitions. The three most prominent and high-value transactions include: the $2.6 billion acquisition of dermatology-focused Medicis Pharmaceutical in September 2012; the $8.7 billion acquisition of eye health company Bausch + Lomb in August 2013; and the $1 billion acquisition of Sprout Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company specializing in treatments for female sexual dysfunction, in August 2015.

(Compiled by Wang Chan)