GPC Biotech acquires assets of Axxima Pharmaceuticals

German company GPC Biotech has acquired the material assets of kinase drug discovery firm Axxima Pharmaceuticals, based in Munich.

Axxima filed for insolvency in December 2004 and its assets were transferred to a newly formed holding company in which certain Axxima investors and other new investors injected an additional net €8.7m in cash. GPC Biotech will purchase the holding company in a cash neutral transaction for €13.7m by issuing approximately 1.3 million new shares at a price of €10.47.

'This strategic acquisition is enabling us to add important expertise in the area of kinase-based drug discovery at a very favorable price,' said Dr Bernd R. Seizinger, ceo of GPC Biotech. 'This expertise is highly complementary to our own internal capabilities. We believe this acquisition will assist us in achieving our longer-term goal of further growing our drug pipeline with novel mechanism-based therapies to treat cancer.'

Axxima Pharmaceuticals started operations in Martinsried in 1998 and was founded by a group of scientists, led by Dr Axel Ullrich, a former leading scientist at Genentech and co-founder of Sugen. GPC Biotech will purchase the holding company to which material assets of Axxima and the net €8.7m cash infusion from investors were transferred.

GPC Biotech is also receiving all of Axxima's patents, patent applications and know-how as well as several early-stage drug discovery programmes in the areas of cancer. Additional pre-clinical and early clinical programmes in infectious disease will also be transferred to GPC Biotech and might be partnered going forward.

Approximately 40 employees from Axxima are expected to be taken on to further strengthen GPC biotech's own drug discovery capabilities. Milestone payments will also be made to the insolvency receiver of Axxima for the entry of three compounds protected by Axxima's patent estate into clinical trials, up to a maximum total of €9m.