AstraZeneca has agreed to sublicense its global rights to Movantik excluding Europe, Canada and Israel, to RedHill Biopharma.
Movantik is used in the treatment of opioid-induced constipation.
Ruud Dobber, executive vice president, BioPharmaceuticals Business Unit, said: “This divestment supports our strategy to realize value from medicines in our portfolio that are mature or outside our current scope to enable reinvestment in our main therapy areas. Movantik is an important established medicine and the divestment to RedHill will ensure its continued availability for patients.”
As part of the agreement, AstraZeneca will continue to manufacture and supply Movantik to RedHill during a transition period. In 2015, AstraZeneca entered into a co-commercialization agreement with Daiichi Sankyo, Inc. for Movantik in the US, which will be transferred to RedHill.
RedHill will make an upfront payment of $52.5 million to AstraZeneca on closing and a further non-contingent payment of $15 million in 2021.
Movantik generated sales of $96 million in the US. The divestment is expected to complete in the first quarter of 2020, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory clearances.
Movantik was licensed from Nektar Therapeutics in 2009. In 2016, AstraZeneca divested the rights in Europe to ProStrakan Group (now KKI) and the rights in Canada and Israel to Knight Therapeutics.
AstraZeneca has been shedding mature drug lines or drugs that do not fit in with its areas of focus.
AstraZeneca employs about 1,500 in Delaware.
