Prima BioMed Ltd (ASX: PRR) (NASDAQ: PBMD) acquired Immutep SA, a Paris, France-based late stage biopharmaceutical company focused on immuno-oncology for approximately US$28M.
The transaction is to be funded via an investment agreement with Bergen Global Opportunity Fund, LP of up to US$37.4M over a 24-month period.
Led by John Hawken, CEO, Immutep has been developing a number of complementary types of cancer immunotherapies based on its patented Lymphocyte Activation Gene 3 (LAG-3) technology. Its lead product IMP321 has been tested in various clinical trials to date, both alone and in combination with other therapies. The company holds the world-wide rights (excluding China and Taiwan) to commercialise IMP321. This includes trials in chemo-immunotherapy, a combination of immunotherapy and chemotherapy which significantly enhances patients’ immune response to cancers.
Immutep’s development partnerships, which will provide future milestone payments and royalties to Prima, include:
IMP321: a Phase II chemo-immunotherapy trial combining IMP321 with first line chemotherapy for metastatic breast cancer (“MBC”) in partnership with Chinese pharma company Eddingpharm. Eddingpharm has exclusively sub-licensed IMP321 for development in China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan and this could result in undisclosed milestone payments and royalties. Prima will take over responsibility for the development of IMP321 in the rest of the world;
IMP731: a Phase I clinical trial program in auto-immune diseases in partnership with GlaxoSmithKline with potential milestone payments of up to approx. US$100m and additional royalties;
IMP701: an immune checkpoint blocker pre-clinical program in cancer immunotherapy partnered with CoStim (Novartis). Financial details are undisclosed but include milestone payments and royalties.
The company’s founder and Scientific and Medical Director, Professor Frédéric Triebel will join Prima as its Chief Scientific Officer, along with his scientific team.
FinSMEs
03/10/2014