Shire to acquire Dyax for $5.9B
Dublin-based Shire has announced it will acquire Dyax for $37.30 in cash per Dyax share, for aggregate upfront consideration of about $5.9 billion. Dyax shareholders may receive additional value through a non-tradable contingent value right (CVR) that will pay $4 in cash per Dyax share upon approval of DX-2930 in HAE, representing a potential additional $646 million in aggregate contingent consideration.
Dyax is a publicly traded, Massachusetts-based biotechnology company primarily focused on the development of plasma kallikrein (pKal) inhibitors for the treatment of HAE, a debilitating and sometimes life-threatening rare genetic disease. Dyax already has successfully developed and commercialized KALBITOR, which is approved for HAE acute treatment in patients 12 years of age and older, and represented an early innovation in HAE treatment.
Dyax’s most advanced clinical program is DX-2930, a phase III-ready, fully humanized monoclonal antibody targeting pKal with proof-of-concept phase Ib efficacy data. The data demonstrate a >90% reduction in HAE attacks compared to placebo in the 300mg/400mg arms in patients with >2 attacks in the three months prior to study entry.
DX-2930 has received Fast Track, Breakthrough Therapy and Orphan Drug designations by the FDA and also has received Orphan Drug status in the E.U. It is expected to enter phase III clinical trials by year-end 2015.
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