Eli Lilly to buy Sigilon Therapeutics to expand diabetes treatments (updated)

Sigilon Therapeutics

29/06/2023 13:06

(Recasts throughout with details on Lilly's stake, background)
       June 29 (Reuters) - Eli Lilly and Co  LLY.N  said on
Thursday it will acquire all the shares of Sigilon Therapeutics
 SGTX.O  that it did not own to gain access to experimental cell
therapies that can provide longer-term solutions for diabetes
patients.
    A major provider of diabetes drugs and insulin, Lilly owned
nearly 8.44% stake in Sigilon as of March 27. It would pay
$14.92 per share, or $34.6 million in upfront cash, for the rest
of the company.
    Sigilon shareholders will get an additional $111.64 per
share if they achieve certain developmental and regulatory
milestones, Lilly said.    
    Shares of Sigilion soared more than eightfold in premarket
trading to $34.48.
    The deal, which is expected to close in the third quarter of
2023, would give Lilly access to Sigilon's proprietary cell
therapy candidate being developed to treat type 1 diabetes.
    The two companies have been partners since 2018, when Lilly
paid Sigilon $63 million for a licensing deal to develop cell
therapes targeting type 1 diabetes and made an undisclosed
equity investment.
    Lilly's portfolio of diabetes products contributed more than
half of its total revenue in 2022.
 

 (Reporting by Mariam Sunny in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi
Majumdar)
 ((Mariam.ESunny@thomsonreuters.com;))