Six firms act for parties involved with Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca’s acquisition of Chinese peer Gracell Biotechnologies for USD1.2 billion, which will be completed in the first quarter of this year.
After the transaction, Gracell will become the first biotech enterprise in China wholly owned by a multinational pharmaceutical company.
Cooley partners Rama Padmanabhan and Rowook Park led the team advising Gracell. Partners Will Cai, Patrick Loofbourrow and Jie Zhang advised on general corporate and securities law matters.
AllBright Law Offices’ senior partners Wen Congjun, Joy Huang and Frank Xu advised Gracell on PRC laws. Senior partner Wu Weiming, along with partners Gu Xiao and Zhang Ningxiao, provided advice on cyber security, data compliance, antitrust and labour matters.
Harneys advised Gracell on Cayman Islands law.
Freshfields M&A partner Sebastian Fain led the team advising AstraZeneca on overseas laws. Partner Vinita Kailasanath advised on life sciences, partner Nicole Foster counselled on executive compensation and employee benefits matters, while Mary Lehner, Jenny Leahy and Simon Priddis gave antitrust advice, and tax partner Claude Stansbury also supported the team.
Rui Min Law Firm acted as AstraZeneca’s PRC consultant and Maples Group provided Cayman Islands law advice.
Gracell’s FasTCAR manufacturing platform can significantly shorten the production time on AstraZeneca’s pipeline of cell therapies. This includes the addition of a new cell therapy, GC012F CAR-T, which is expected to be a next-generation treatment option that is aimed at multiple myeloma, other haematologic malignancies and autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus.
Despite technical success, Gracell has reported consecutive financial losses. The biopharmaceutical company’s financial report reveals a RMB67.6 million net loss in the third quarter of 2023 and a RMB608 million (USD85.45 million) net loss in 2022.
