Novartis to Acquire Myricx Bio for Up to $1.5 Billion, Securing Next-Generation NMTi-ADC Platform for Solid Tumours
核心洞察
Novartis has agreed to acquire UK-based Myricx Bio (搜索) in a deal valued at up to $1.5 billion, including $1.1 billion upfront cash and potential milestone payments.
Myricx Bio (搜索) has developed a novel class of N-myristoyltransferase (搜索) inhibitor (NMTi) payloads for antibody-drug conjugates, offering a differentiated mechanism of action to overcome limitations of current ADC payloads.
The acquisition includes two lead pre-clinical ADC assets targeting B7-H3 (搜索) and HER2 (搜索), with potential applications across multiple solid tumour types.
Novartis has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Myricx Bio (搜索), a UK-headquartered pre-clinical oncology company, in a transaction valued at up to $1.5 billion. The deal includes an upfront cash payment of $1.1 billion plus potential milestone payments, and is expected to close in the second half of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions including regulatory approvals.
The acquisition brings together Novartis's established expertise in oncology with Myricx Bio (搜索)'s novel antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) platform, built around a first-in-class N-myristoyltransferase (搜索) inhibitor (NMTi) payload with a differentiated, orthogonal mechanism of action.
A Novel Approach to ADC Payloads
Myricx Bio (搜索), a spin-out from Imperial College London and the Francis Crick Institute, was co-founded in 2019 by Dr. Roberto Solari, a Venture Partner at Brandon Capital (搜索), alongside Professor Ed Tate and Dr. Andy Bell, with support from Cancer Research UK. The company has translated its founders' extensive research in NMT biology and chemistry into ADC payloads designed to address the limitations of commonly used payload classes such as TOPO-1 and tubulin inhibitors.
"There is a widely recognised and critical unmet need for new ADC payloads that can improve the standard of care over current payloads, overcome payload resistance, improve tolerability and offer a wider therapeutic index," said Mohit Rawat, CEO of Myricx Bio (搜索). "We are delighted that Novartis recognises the transformative promise of our NMTi-ADC platform to deliver this next-generation of potential first-in-class, highly differentiated ADC therapeutics."
The company has advanced a pre-clinical pipeline of proprietary NMTi-ADCs, with two lead assets directed against established cancer targets B7-H3 (搜索) and HER2 (搜索), having potential impact across multiple solid tumour settings.
Brandon Capital (搜索)'s Role in Building Myricx Bio (搜索)
Brandon Capital (搜索), Australasia's leading life sciences venture capital firm, played an instrumental role in the formation and development of Myricx Bio (搜索). The firm was a joint founding seed investor in 2019, with Managing Partner Dr. Stephen Thompson leading the investment and providing strategic and operational support through the company's capital-efficient early development.
Dr. Jonathan Tobin, Partner at Brandon Capital (搜索) and Myricx Bio (搜索) Director, noted: "We recognised that NMTi-ADCs could become the next-generation class of ADC payloads, and that with a growing pipeline of cytotoxic payloads there would become a need for a completely orthogonal mechanism."
In 2023, Brandon Capital (搜索) supported a strategic pivot to focus on ADCs, with Dr. Tobin joining Myricx Bio (搜索) as Executive Director to help build the company's ADC capability. In 2024, Myricx Bio raised a £90 million (approximately A$172 million) Series A round co-led by Novo Holdings and Abingworth, with participation from British Business Bank, Eli Lilly, Cancer Research Horizons, Sofinnova Partners, and Brandon Capital. At the time, this represented the largest Series A of a UK academic start-up company.
Dr. Roberto Solari, Venture Partner at Brandon Capital (搜索) and Myricx Bio (搜索)'s founding CEO, reflected: "When Brandon Capital first backed the potential for NMT inhibition based on a new understanding of its biology, there was no precedent for this approach. It was early, highly innovative, and high risk. But we believed the science had the potential to create an entirely new class of cancer therapeutics. Today's acquisition by Novartis shows that judgment was right."
Investor Returns and Strategic Significance
The exit will generate a significant return for Brandon Capital (搜索)'s investors, including Australian superannuation funds Hostplus, HESTA, and Aware Super, as well as CSL and QIC. Dr. Stephen Thompson, Managing Partner at Brandon Capital, stated: "Myricx Bio (搜索) encapsulates the kind of company we exist to build: a bold, potentially first-in-class therapeutic platform with the promise to deliver both exceptional investor returns and meaningful benefit for patients."
Mohit Rawat added: "This acquisition is a tremendous endorsement of the leadership of our NMTi-ADC platform, and the insights, innovation and achievements of our founders and team towards our mission of providing more effective and better tolerated therapeutic options for cancer patients. Together with Novartis, we look forward to building upon our work to transform the landscape of cancer treatment."