VC-backed Acerta sold to trade for up to $7bn

José Rojo
21 December 2015

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Acerta Pharma, a Dutch biotech backed by a consortium of VC houses, has been sold to UK-based AstraZeneca in a trade sale that could fetch as much as $7bn.

According to AstraZeneca, the takeover will be finalised by the end of Q1 2016, once regulatory approval has been secured.

The corporate will pay an initial $2.5bn in cash and debt in return for a 55% stake in Acerta. This will be followed by a further $1.5bn once Acerta's core product, acalabrutinib, receives the regulatory go-ahead in the US.

In addition, the agreement features an option for AstraZeneca to buy the remaining 45% stake for $4bn, bringing the purchase price to a total of $7bn.

The acquisition is AstraZeneca's latest in a bid by the listed corporate to be active across all segments within the oncology space; the multinational is understood by press reports to have faced competition for the asset from peers Amgen and Merck & Co.

Under its new parent, Acerta will accelerate development for acalabrutinib, which targets blood cancers and solid tumours and is currently undergoing phase-III clinical trials. Once the therapy is commercially launched, it could net an annual $5bn in sales worldwide, according to AstraZeneca.

A source familiar with the situation told unquote" that VC backers OrbiMed, Frazier Healthcare Ventures, BioGeneration Ventures and BOM Capital will partially exit when AstraZeneca buys its initial 55% stake, with plans for a complete divestment once the corporate ups its stake in Acerta.

Several of the VC firms, including Netherlands-headquartered BioGeneration and BOM Capital, helped co-found Acerta in early 2013. According to press reports, the biotech, valued below the $50m mark at the time, raised $130-175m from its backers later on that year. In May 2015, a further $375m was secured via a private placement arranged by the shareholders, unquote" understands.

Acerta's VC-backed inception mirrors that of fellow Dutch biotech Dezima Pharma. The business, specialised in cholesterol-reducing therapies, was set up by majority shareholder Forbion Capital Partners and minority owners BioGeneration and New Science Ventures in 2012.

As with Acerta, Dezima's backers opted for a trade sale to exit the asset. In mid-September, the trio offloaded the biotech to multinational Amgen for a total of $1.55bn; at the time, Forbion managing partner Sander Slootweg told unquote" the sale could result in a 50x return for the VC.

Company
Created in 2013, Acerta Pharma is a drug developer focusing on haematological conditions.

Its flagship product, acalabrutinib, is a molecule used to inhibit Bruton's tyrosine kinase in blood cancers and solid tumours. The therapy, yet to go to market, has been tested across approximately 1,000 patients during the clinical trials.

Acerta has headquarters in both Oss, the Netherlands, and Redwood City, California, and manages a number of additional sites in the US. The business currently employs around 150 people.

People
AstraZeneca was represented by CEO Pascal Soriot.