Merck's acquisition of Exelead will accelerate novel modalities service offering

6 January 2022

German life sciences and pharm company Merck KGaA (MRK: DE) has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Exelead, a USA-based biopharmaceutical contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO).

Merck will pay approximately $780 million in cash to buy the company. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2022 and is subject to regulatory clearances as well as the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions.

Exelead specializes in complex injectable formulations, including lipid nanoparticle (LNP) based drug delivery technology which is key in mRNA therapeutics for use in COVID-19 and many other indications.

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