CRISPR Therapeutics just inked a deal worth at least $335 million with Bayer – in which the pharma giant will work with the Cambridge gene editing startup’s technology to develop new therapies for blood disorders, blindness and congenital heart disease.
“Bayer and CRISPR Therapeutics are philosophically and financially aligned in our mission to develop game-changing or possibly curative treatments for serious human genetic diseases,” Bayer CEO Marijn Dekkers said in a statement.
Bayer will dole out at least $300 million in R&D investments to CRISPR Therapeutics over the next five years. It’ll also pay $35 million in cash to acquire a minority stake in CRISPR Therapeutics – and provide its extensive resources in protein engineering to the startup.
The deal is the first investment made by the newly launched Bayer LifeScience Center. This joint venture will have its own leadership system, with Dr. Axel Bouchon – head of the BLSC – serving as an interim CEO. It’ll be based in London, with operations in Cambridge – with a new name forthcoming. Dr. Rodger Novak will serve as interim chairman of the new joint venture’s board.
CRISPR Therapeutics will keep a 50 percent ownership in the “high-risk, high-reward” areas of blood disorders, blindness and congenital heart diseases, Novak said in the statement. It’ll also “retain full access to target delivery technologies and IP development” formed in the joint venture, which it’ll use to advance CRISPR’s core gene editing technology.
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