Global PC Makers Eye Chinese Memory Chip Suppliers Amid Ongoing Supply Crunch 
Ford and Geely Explore Strategic Manufacturing Partnership in Europe 
Sony Q3 Profit Jumps on Gaming and Image Sensors, Full-Year Outlook Raised 
Rio Tinto Shares Hit Record High After Ending Glencore Merger Talks 
TSMC Eyes 3nm Chip Production in Japan with $17 Billion Kumamoto Investment 
SpaceX Prioritizes Moon Mission Before Mars as Starship Development Accelerates 
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Says AI Investment Boom Is Just Beginning as NVDA Shares Surge 
Tencent Shares Slide After WeChat Restricts YuanBao AI Promotional Links 
Uber Ordered to Pay $8.5 Million in Bellwether Sexual Assault Lawsuit 
Prudential Financial Reports Higher Q4 Profit on Strong Underwriting and Investment Gains 
Instagram Outage Disrupts Thousands of U.S. Users 
Trump Backs Nexstar–Tegna Merger Amid Shifting U.S. Media Landscape 
OpenAI Expands Enterprise AI Strategy With Major Hiring Push Ahead of New Business Offering 
SoftBank Shares Slide After Arm Earnings Miss Fuels Tech Stock Sell-Off 
American Airlines CEO to Meet Pilots Union Amid Storm Response and Financial Concerns 
Alphabet’s Massive AI Spending Surge Signals Confidence in Google’s Growth Engine 
CK Hutchison Launches Arbitration After Panama Court Revokes Canal Port Licences 
AstraZeneca revealed on Tuesday, Dec. 26, that it will buy the China-based biopharmaceutical company Gracell Biotechnologies for up to $1.2 billion. The Anglo-Swedish multinational pharma and biotechnology firm is making this move to achieve its cell therapy ambitions.
According to Reuters, AstraZeneca is also aiming to use the acquisition of Gracell Biotechnologies to boost its presence in China, which is currently the second-largest pharmaceutical market in the world, further.
Payment Terms and Other Acquisition Arrangements
AstraZeneca and Gracell agreed to an all-cash deal for the acquisition. Once the buyout is completed, the former’s portfolio is set to expand with the addition of several experimental therapies.
AstraZeneca is buying the Chinese firm at $2 per ordinary share. This is also equivalent to $10 per American Depository Share of Gracell, which represents a premium of 61.6% based on its Dec. 22 closing.
Merging of Expertise to Achieve Growth and New Biotech Innovation
AstraZeneca and Gracell are looking to combine their respective expertise and resources to develop effective therapies for diseases. They also expect to find new ways of optimizing the therapeutic profile of engineered T cells and take the lead in the next generation of autologous cell therapies.
“The proposed acquisition of Gracell will complement AstraZeneca’s existing capabilities and previous investments in cell therapy, where we have established our presence in CAR-T and T-cell receptor therapies (TCR-Ts) in solid tumors,” AstraZeneca’s executive vice president of Oncology research and development, Susan Galbraith, said in a press release.
She further explained, “GC012F will accelerate our cell therapy strategy in hematology with the opportunity to bring a potential best-in-class treatment to patients living with blood cancers using a differentiated manufacturing process, as well as exploring the potential for cell therapy to reset the immune response in autoimmune diseases.”
Gracell Biotechnologies’ founder, chairman, and chief executive officer, Dr. William Cao, also commented, “We look forward to working with AstraZeneca to accelerate our shared goal of bringing transformative cell therapies to more patients living with debilitating diseases.”
Photo by: Declan Sun/Unsplash
