Merck (NYSE: MRK), also known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, has finalized an agreement to acquire Caraway Therapeutics, Inc. in a deal valued up to $610 million. The acquisition involves an undisclosed initial payment and potential milestone payments. Merck plans to integrate Caraway’s innovative work on lysosomal function modulation for neurodegenerative diseases. Caraway, a preclinical biopharmaceutical company, focuses on small-molecule therapeutics for genetically defined neurodegenerative and rare diseases. This acquisition aims to merge Merck’s research expertise with Caraway’s developments to create disease-altering therapies.
Merck (NYSE: MRK), known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada, and Caraway Therapeutics, Inc. announced today that the companies have entered into a definitive agreement under which Merck, through a subsidiary, will acquire Caraway Therapeutics for a total potential consideration of up to $610 million, including an undisclosed upfront payment as well as contingent milestone payments. The upfront payment will be expensed by Merck in the fourth quarter of 2023 and included in non-GAAP results.
“Caraway’s multidisciplinary approach has yielded important progress in evaluating novel mechanisms of modulation of lysosomal function with potential for the treatment of progressive neurodegenerative diseases,” said George Addona, senior vice president, of discovery, preclinical development, and translational medicine, Merck Research Laboratories. “We look forward to applying our expertise to build upon this work to develop much-needed disease-modifying therapies for these conditions.”
Caraway is a preclinical biopharmaceutical company pursuing innovative approaches for the treatment of genetically defined neurodegenerative and rare diseases. The company has built a pipeline of novel, small-molecule therapeutics for the treatment of genetically defined neurodegenerative and rare diseases.
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“This important milestone is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the Caraway team and our mission to develop therapeutics with the potential to alter the progression of devasting neurodegenerative diseases and help patients,” said Martin D. Williams, chief executive officer, of Caraway Therapeutics. “This acquisition leverages Merck’s industry-leading research and development capabilities to help further advance our discovery and preclinical programs. We thank and appreciate our investors, including SV Health Investors and its Dementia Discovery Fund, AbbVie Ventures, Amgen Ventures, Eisai Innovation, and MRL Ventures Fund for their support.”
Under the terms of the agreement, Merck, through a subsidiary, will acquire all outstanding shares of Caraway with earnout milestones associated with the development of certain pipeline candidates. The Board of Directors of Caraway Therapeutics has approved the transaction. Merck, through its MRL Ventures Fund, has been a shareholder of Caraway Therapeutics since 2018.
Source: Biospace