Novartis pays Baiyu $70M, with $1.1B chaser, for cancer prospect

Oct 18, 2024

Novartis is paying Chengdu Baiyu Pharmaceutical $70 million to add to its crop of cancer candidates. The deal, which features $1.1 billion in milestones, covers the global rights to a small molecule discovered by a Chinese biotech that has built a business around botanical drugs.

Baiyu has spent the past 20 years researching pharmacological components of Ginkgo biloba, a species of tree native to East Asia. The work has resulted in a portfolio of botanical drugs. More recently, Baiyu has built a pipeline led by clinical-phase candidates that target DNA-dependent protein kinases (DNA-PK) and PARP7 to treat solid tumors. The pipeline features preclinical assets against undisclosed targets.

Novartis has seen enough promise in one of Baiyu’s programs to drop $70 million for the global rights. It is unclear exactly what the Swiss drugmaker has got in return for the outlay. Baiyu’s statement makes no mention of the small molecule’s target, the cancers it could treat or its stage of development.

The biotech said its cancer research is focused on targeted radiotherapy and immuno-oncology. Baiyu began a pair of early-phase trials of its lead DNA-PK candidate earlier this year. The biotech started a phase 1 trial of its PARP7 inhibitor around the same time.

Baiyu called the Novartis deal an important step for its efforts to make anti-tumor treatments available globally. The biotech’s preclinical pipeline extends beyond cancer to cover inflammation and anti-aging assets.

For Novartis, the agreement extends a list of 2024 cancer deals that includes a move to buy MorphoSys for around $2.9 billion, a $1 billion takeover of the radiopharma biotech Mariana Oncology and a $150 million bet on Dren Bio’s bispecific antibodies.