Ipsen and Inspiration Biopharma sell IB1001 rights to Cangene

French drugmaker Ipsen (Euronext: IPN) and privately-held Inspiration Biopharmaceuticals entered into an asset purchase agreement (APA) whereby Canada’s Cangene Corp (CNJ: CN) agrees to acquire the worldwide rights to IB1001, a recombinant factor IX (rFIX) for the treatment of hemophilia B.

Under the terms of the APA, Cangene has agreed to pay $5.9 million upfront, up to $50 million in potential additional commercial milestones as well net sales payments equivalent to tiered double digit percentage of IB1001 annual net sales.

The APA was filed on February 6, prior to the hearing scheduled to consider approval of the APA before the US Federal Bankruptcy Court in Boston. The sale is a result of a joint marketing and sale process pursued by Ipsen and Inspiration shortly after Inspiration filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code on October 30, 2012. Ipsen has been providing Inspiration with debtor-in-possession financing (DIP) for an amount of up to $23.6 million to fund Inspiration’s operations during the sale process.