Roche pays $7.1 billion to acquire Telavant Holdings

Earlier today, Roche announced that it will purchase Telavant from Roivant Holdings and Pfizer Inc. for an initial $7.1 billion. Telavant is a developer of a novel medication for inflammatory bowel diseases.

Thomas Schinecker, CEO of Roche, made the long-rumored acquisition in March, making it the company's first significant acquisition under his leadership.

Schinecker stated last month that Roche was open to significant mergers if they made sense from a scientific and business standpoint.

In accordance with the purchase, Roche will have the ability to create, produce, and market RVT-3101, an investigational antibody, in the United States and Japan.

The medication, which is being prepared for late-stage clinical trials, is meant to treat Crohn's disease, a kind of inflammatory bowel disease, as well as moderate-to-severe ulcerative colitis, a chronic illness in which the colon and rectum become inflamed.

Nearly 8 million people have been diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease globally, and 80% of those patients do not get a long-lasting remission, according to Roche.

Roche said the medicine has the potential to be used to treat several other ailments and agreed to pay an extra $150 million in milestone payments.

The Basel-based business declared its dedication to launching an RVT-3101 worldwide Phase 3 study as soon as feasible. Pfizer is the owner of the commercialization rights outside of the United States and Japan.

(Sources: investing.com, reuters.com)