GHENT, Belgium, June 20, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ablynx [Euronext Brussels: ABLX] today announced that at the European Mediscience Awards 2014, the Company won the Transaction of the Year Award for its deal with AbbVie, worth up to US$840 million, for the development and commercialisation of its anti-IL-6R Nanobody® (ALX-0061) to treat inflammatory diseases.
Ablynx also signed an exclusive collaboration and licensing agreement with Merck & Co in February 2014, focused on the discovery and development of several predefined Nanobody candidates for the development of cancer immunotherapies. Under the terms of the agreement, Ablynx received an upfront payment of €20 million and will receive up to €10.7 million in research funding with the potential to accrue as much as €1.7 billion plus tiered royalties.
The European Mediscience Awards, sponsored by Kempen & Co, is the largest annual gathering of private and publicly quoted healthcare, biotech and life sciences companies in Europe. It celebrates the best in the sector and highlights the achievements of individuals and companies. The event recognises the importance of the capital markets to fund growth and innovation. Transaction of the Year is awarded to a company which has completed a significant commercial or corporate transaction during the period 1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014.
Dr Edwin Moses, Chief Executive Officer of Ablynx, commented:
"We are delighted to have won this prestigious award against such strong competition. In September 2013, we signed one of the year's largest product licensing deals for a clinical asset with AbbVie, worth up to US$840 million plus double digit royalties. Then in February 2014 we entered into our second research collaboration and licensing agreement with Merck & Co. These deals demonstrate the potential of our Nanobody platform and have not only provided us with substantial financial resources but will also enable us to further expand our expertise and capabilities in late-stage clinical development and in the immuno-oncology field. These deals were major landmarks for the Company and we are looking forward to fruitful and successful partnerships."
About Ablynx
Ablynx is a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of Nanobodies®, a novel class of therapeutic proteins based on single-domain antibody fragments, for a range of serious human diseases, including inflammation, haematology, oncology and pulmonary disease. Today, the Company has more than 30 programmes in the pipeline and seven Nanobodies in clinical development. Ablynx has on-going research collaborations and significant partnerships with major pharmaceutical companies including AbbVie, Boehringer Ingelheim, Merck & Co, Merck Serono and Novartis. The Company is headquartered in Ghent, Belgium. More information can be found on www.ablynx.com.
For more information, please contact
Ablynx:
Dr Edwin Moses
CEO
t: +32 (0)9 262 00 07
m: +44 (0)7771 954 193 /
+32 (0)473 39 50 68
e: edwin.moses@ablynx.com
Marieke Vermeersch
Associate Director Investor Relations
t: +32 (0)9 262 00 82
m: +32 (0)479 49 06 03
e: marieke.vermeersch@ablynx.com
Follow us on Twitter @AblynxABLX
Ablynx media relations Consilium Strategic Communications:
Mary-Jane Elliott, Amber Bielecka, Lindsey Neville
t: +44 203 709 5700
e: ablynx@consilium-comms.com
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