More than “the king of diet pills”, Lily.US (LLY.US) plans to acquire Merida for up to $2.88 billion to increase the autoimmunity circuit

The Zhitong Finance App learned that LLY.US (LLY.US) plans to acquire Merida Biosciences Inc., with up to $2.88 billion in cash to increase the autoimmune and allergic disease fields to get rid of excessive dependence on the two pillars of weight loss and diabetes — these two major markets helped it reach the top of the global pharmaceutical market value.

Merida is an unlisted biotech company focused on developing therapies that target pathogenic autoantibodies without compromising the natural immune system. Its most advanced products are currently in phase I clinical trials for Graves disease and thyroid eye disease.

Since this year, Eli Lilly has set off a merger and acquisition frenzy, and the total amount of transactions announced so far exceeds 20 billion US dollars. With the generous cash flow brought by its blockbuster drugs Zepbound and Mounjaro, Eli Lilly is actively enriching its product line, focusing on early-stage drugs, and aiming to lay out the next major drug ahead of schedule.

This year, the pharmaceutical giant agreed to spend up to $7.8 billion to buy sleep medicine manufacturer Centessa Pharmaceuticals Plc and spend up to $7 billion to acquire cancer drug development company Kelonia Therapeutics — both of which are among the highest acquisitions in the company's history. In May, Eli Lilly also reached an agreement to acquire three vaccine research and development companies for up to $3.8 billion. The company's management has given a signal that more deals are about to be completed in the future.

Eli Lilly said in a statement that it will pay a cash advance payment, and if Merida's experimental products reach the expected development schedule, additional milestone payments will also be made. Financial details were not disclosed. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter.

As of press time, Eli Lilly was down 0.2% before the market. The stock has accumulated a cumulative increase of nearly 10% since this year.