Ipsen Acquires Clementia for $1.31 Billion to Strengthen Rare Disease Portfolio

VCBeat (biobeat1) has learned that on February 25, 2019, Ipsen, a French biopharmaceutical company, acquired its peer Clementia for up to $1.31 billion. This acquisition will enhance Ipsen’s capabilities in treating rare diseases and expand its product portfolio.

Ipsen stated that it would acquire all outstanding shares of Clementia at $25 per share and pay $263 million for palovarotene, the lead drug candidate developed by Clementia, bringing the total transaction value to up to $1.31 billion. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2019. Following the announcement, Clementia’s stock price surged 75% on the same day.

Clementia, founded in 2010 and headquartered in Montreal, Canada, is a biopharmaceutical company. The company has developed a drug called Palovarotene, a novel retinoic acid receptor gamma (RARγ) agonist for the treatment of fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP), multiple osteochondromas (MO), and other conditions. Both FOP and MO are rare skeletal disorders with no currently available treatments. Notably, Palovarotene has received orphan drug designation from both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and was expected to enter the market in 2020.

David Meek, CEO of Ipsen, stated: “Ipsen is committed to developing novel therapeutic solutions for patients with rare diseases. Upon completion of the acquisition, we will gain Clementia’s expertise, exceptional talent, and the rare disease candidate drug palovarotene, which will significantly enhance our capabilities in rare disease research.”

Clarissa Desjardins, CEO of Clementia, stated, “Ipsen’s commercial strength will help bring palovarotene to market as quickly as possible. We will work closely with Ipsen to continue developing novel therapies for patients with rare diseases, with a patient-centric approach.”

Ipsen is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing novel therapies for cancer, neurological disorders, and rare diseases. Currently, the company has successfully developed innovative drugs for conditions such as prostate cancer, neuroendocrine tumors, renal cell carcinoma, and pancreatic cancer. Ipsen markets more than 20 medicines in 115 countries worldwide, with total sales exceeding €2.2 billion in 2018.

(Compiled by Jiao Yanli)