RE:RE:RE:RE:ONCY's pelareorep activates interferon (IFN) signalling In the recent past, high patent expiration exposures have triggered merger activity: BMS’s Celgene Corporation buy in 2019 ahead of its Eliquis patent loss, for example, and AbbVie Inc.’s acquisition of Allergan, Inc. in 2020, several years ahead of its 2023 Humira exclusivity loss. Most of the companies facing the highest cliffs, such as BMS, Pfizer Inc. and Merck & Co., Inc., have a high capacity for M&A.
With Pfizer active in the M&A market, dipping into its COVID-19 coffers from sales of its Comirnaty vaccine and the antiviral Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir), which are set to sell $32bn and $22bn, respectively, this year, other companies should be following the Big Pharma’s lead.
And with the US passage into law of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) IRA which was meant to be cost-cutting legislation, it inexplicably incentivizes the typically more expensive biologics over small molecules giving novel biologics 13 years of marketing exclusivity versus 9 years for small molecules, which again benefits a SME biotechnology company like ONCY.