Ipsen (Euronext: IPN; ADR: IPSEY) today disclosed that it has sold its shares in PregLem Holding SA to Gedeon Richter Plc, as have all PregLem's other shareholders.
In June 2007, the Group spun off to PregLem, then a newly-formed, privately held Swiss biopharmaceutical company, a sulfatase inhibitor and a somatostatin analogue (PGL1001 and PGL2001, respectively), patents and know-how for use in the field of human reproductive medicine. In parallel, Ipsen subscribed to newly issued shares of Preglem, representing a c.15 % minority interest in its share capital.
PregLem's lead product, PGL4001 (Esmya™), successfully completed Phase III clinical trials in June 2010 for the treatment of uterine myoma.
Ipsen will receive initial proceeds of CHF 6 million from the sale of its PregLem shares. Ipsen may also receive progressive additional payments of up to CHF 25 million, contingent upon the achievement of certain business development and regulatory milestones for EsmyaTM. The impact of this transaction will be recorded as financial income in Ipsen's accounts.
Additionally, subject to PGL1001 and PGL2001 being granted marketing approvals, Ipsen will notably receive mid single digit royalties on PregLem's future net sales of these products.
Christophe Thurieau, Ipsen's Vice-President Scientific Affairs and former Director of PregLem, said: "The acquisition of PregLem by Gedeon Richter illustrates the quality and medical value of sulfatase inhibitors originating from Ipsen's research. This transaction validates our strategy to focus on our four targeted disease areas (oncology, endocrinology, neurology and hematology) while maximizing the value of our R&D pipeline by out-licensing promising compounds outside of our core focus. "