According to media reports, Roche is said to be in the final stages of negotiations with Roivant for a potential deal worth up to $7 billion. The deal would involve Roche taking control of Roivant’s RVT-3101, a monoclonal antibody that targets tumour necrosis factor-like ligand 1A (TL1A) and has the potential to be a first-in-class therapy for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), specifically Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.
Roivant’s pipeline listing indicates that RVT-3101, developed by Roivant’s subsidiary Telavant, is entering Phase III testing for ulcerative colitis and is currently in a Phase II trial for Crohn’s disease, with results expected next year. In June, Roivant reported that the drug demonstrated preliminary evidence of efficacy in the Phase IIb TUSCANY-II trial for ulcerative colitis, showing clinically meaningful improvements in clinical and endoscopic remission rates at 56 weeks, and was found to be safe and well-tolerated.
The Wall Street Journal, citing sources familiar with the matter, stated that an agreement between Roche and Roivant could be announced “in the coming days.” This news led to a 17% increase in Roivant’s share price in after-hours trading, following a 1.6% gain earlier in the day. However, the article suggested that other potential buyers might also express interest in RVT-3101.
Last December, Telavant was established as a joint venture between Roivant and Pfizer, with Pfizer having originally developed RVT-3101 (then known as PF-06480605) and initiated the TUSCANY-2 trial. Pfizer currently holds a 25% stake in Telavant and has a similar arrangement with Roivant for the autoimmune disease subsidiary Priovant.
If the deal between Roche and Roivant materializes, it would mark the largest transaction for Roche under the leadership of its new CEO, Thomas Schinecker, who took over from Severin Schwann in March. If the reported deal value is accurate, it would approach the entire market capitalization of Roivant, which currently stands at around $8.9 billion.
