Hansoh Pharmaceuticals: Shareholding company Avere will be merged into Next Cure
On July 14, Hansoh Pharmaceuticals (03692) announced that Avere Therapeutics, Inc., a company invested by the company, signed a merger agreement with NextCure (NXTC.O), a Nasdaq-listed company, and Avere will be merged into NextCure. At the same time, the company has granted Avere an exclusive license for the cyclic peptide interleukin-23 (IL-23) receptor antagonist HS-20118 (AVR-001) and has participated in a directed offering initiated by Avere that included the participation of other investors.
On July 14, Hansoh Pharmaceuticals (03692) announced that Avere Therapeutics, Inc., a company invested by the company, signed a merger agreement with NextCure (NXTC.O), a Nasdaq-listed company, and Avere will be merged into NextCure. At the same time, the company has granted Avere an exclusive license for the cyclic peptide interleukin-23 (IL-23) receptor antagonist HS-20118 (AVR-001) and has participated in a directed offering initiated by Avere that included the participation of other investors. It is reported that the company has entered into an exclusive license agreement with Avere for the above-mentioned products, and the company has granted Avere an exclusive license to develop, produce and commercialize the products worldwide (excluding Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan). The company is entitled to receive an upfront payment of $120 million, development and sales-related milestone payments of up to $2.18 billion, and royalties based on a mid-single to low double-digit percentage of sales in the licensed territory. In connection with the merger, Avere and NextCure entered into a merger agreement in an all-stock transaction. The merger agreement combines Avere's differentiated oral IL-23 program with NextCure's go-to-market structure to accelerate the development of the product. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2026. The combined entity is expected to operate under the company name "Avere Therapeutics, Inc." and trade under the stock symbol "AVRX". After the completion of the above transaction, the company expects to hold 30% to 40% of the total issued share capital of the combined entity and will not be consolidated into the company's consolidated financial statements. The board of directors of the combined entity is expected to consist of five directors, including two directors appointed by the company. (