U.S drugmaker AbbVie has announced its plans to buy Capstan Therapeutics — a cell therapy developer — in a deal worth $2.1 billion. Under the terms of the agreement, AbbVie will pay up to $2.1 billion in cash to acquire Capstan, subject to certain customary adjustments.
Capstan develops CAR-T therapies, a type of treatment that uses a patient’s own immune cells, specifically T cells, to fight diseases. Its main drug, CPTX2309, is currently in early-stage development for the treatment of autoimmune diseases. This drug uses tiny fat-based particles called lipid nanoparticles to deliver instructions to certain immune cells, which find and remove harmful cells that mistakenly attack the body.
“Scientific innovation is required to address not just the symptoms of autoimmune diseases, but also to resolve and potentially cure the underlying disease,” said Roopal Thakkar, AbbVie’s executive vice president, research and development and chief scientific officer. “By advancing CPTX2309 and utilizing Capstan’s novel platform technology, AbbVie and Capstan aim to transform the care of those living with autoimmune diseases by developing treatments that have the potential to reset the immune system.”
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This deal is especially significant for Capstan, which launched less than four years ago with $165 million in seed and Series A fundraising. The company is backed up by the venture arms of a host of Big Pharma including Pfizer, Bayer, Eli Lilly, Bristol Myers Squibb and Novartis.
Capstan CEO and President Laura Shawver said, “In vivo CAR-T represents a potential new treatment modality in medicine – embodying the transformative power of cell therapy with the accessibility and scalability of an off-the-shelf biologic. This technology has the potential to become a first-in-class platform to treat a wide range of autoimmune diseases. Through AbbVie’s world-leading expertise in immunology research, clinical development, and its commercialization capabilities, we believe that this transaction moves us closer to delivering on our shared mission to bring these innovative therapies to patients in need.”
AbbVie has been rapidly diversifying its portfolio ever since it saw a steep decline in the sales of Humira, its flagship rheumatoid arthritis drug that is facing stiff competition. AbbVie spent over $20 billion on acquisitions, including $8.7 billion for neuroscience firm Cerevel, $10.1 billion for cancer drugmaker ImmunoGen and $1.4 billion for Alzheimer’s-focused biotech Aliada since Humira’s patent expiration. The deal to acquire Capstan is the fourth major deal AbbVie has made since February, and the seventh in the course of nearly a year.
This deal aims to strengthen AbbVie’s already strong position in immunology by building on the success of autoimmune treatments Skyrizi and Rinvoq, which are expected to generate over $31 billion in combined sales by 2027.