AbbVie forks out $200m to buy Roche spin-out Nimble

AbbVie will pay Nimble, a biotech company specializing in oral peptide therapeutics, an upfront cash payment of $200 million at the time of closing. Additionally, there will be undisclosed interim funding payments with the private biotech eligible to receive possible milestone payments.

The proposed acquisition sees AbbVie gain Nimble’s lead candidate IL23R inhibitor as well as a pipeline of assets targeting various autoimmune diseases. Additionally, the firm will also acquire Nimble’s screening, peptide synthesis, and optimization platform.

"The addition of Nimble's pipeline to AbbVie's existing pipeline, combined with our deep clinical and translational expertise in immunology, represents an important growth opportunity," said Jonathon Sedgwick, senior vice president and global head of discovery research, AbbVie. "Together, AbbVie and Nimble have the potential to help address the significant unmet medical need for people living with autoimmune diseases."

Nimble’s IL23R inhibitor is also being investigated as a potential treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). According to the company, the asset is clinically validated in specific autoimmune diseases, psoriasis, and IBD development and advancement through strengthened inflammation and immune responses.

In April 2019, Nimble began operating as a standalone business after spinning out of Swiss firm Roche with an aim of commercializing its chemical synthesis technology for drug discovery and development.

"Nimble Therapeutics is committed to transforming the discovery of oral peptide-based medicines. With AbbVie's world-class expertise in developing and commercializing medicines on a global scale, Nimble's novel oral therapies will be well-positioned to reach more people living with autoimmune diseases," said Jigar Patel, founder and CEO of Nimble Therapeutics.

"The talented, passionate and dedicated team at Nimble has made great progress over the past few years and we are pleased that AbbVie has recognized the tremendous potential of our proprietary platform and emerging immunology pipeline."

Nimble is supported by founding investors Telegraph Hill Partners and Roche Ventures.