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news.Tekmira Pharmaceuticals and Protiva Biotherapeutics have signed a share purchase agreement under which the two companies will combine their businesses by Tekmira purchasing the outstanding equity of privately owned Protiva.
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As part of the transaction, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals and the Roche Venture Fund will each invest $5 million in Tekmira at a price of $2.40 per Tekmira share. At close, the new Tekmira is expected to have greater than $35 million in cash and equivalents.
The combined company will retain the name Tekmira. The combined company will advance a pipeline of novel therapeutic products based on technologies and intellectual property contributed from both Tekmira and Protiva that covers a variety of lipid formulations for the delivery of nucleic acids. The new Tekmira will have rights to develop seven RNAi therapeutic products based on access to Alnylam’s intellectual property. The new Tekmira expects to advance two systemic RNAi therapeutics into clinical development over the next 12-18 months as treatments for hypercholesterolemia and cancer.
Timothy Ruane, Tekmira’s president and CEO, said: “The new Tekmira will create greater value for the shareholders of both Tekmira and Protiva than either company could achieve on its own. The combined company will have a strong competitive position and a deep pipeline of product candidates.”