Glenmark arm IGI licenses cancer drug to AbbVie for upfront $700 million

Business Standard

5 days ago

In what can be called a landmark deal for Indian pharma and research, IGI Therapeutics SA, a wholly owned subsidiary of New York-based Ichnos Glenmark Innovation Inc. (IGI), signed an exclusive licensing agreement with US-based AbbVie for its oncology and autoimmune diseases asset ISB 2001. The deal includes an upfront payment of $700 million (₹6,000 crore) and milestone-based payments of up to $1.2 billion (close to ₹10,000 crore).
ISB 2001, an investigational asset, has been developed using IGI's proprietary BEAT protein platform for oncology and autoimmune diseases. The US Food and Drug Administration granted ISB 2001 orphan drug designation in July 2023 and fast-track designation in May 2025 for the treatment of relapsed or refractory myeloma patients. The Phase-1 trial in human studies is underway, and dose escalations are currently being tested. The company believes that due to its mechanism of action, ISB 2001 could potentially be a viable therapeutic option for various autoimmune indications.
Glenmark shares have risen 38 per cent in the last three months and, on Thursday, touched a fresh all-time high of ₹1,919 apiece.
IGI is a wholly owned subsidiary of Mumbai-headquartered Glenmark. Speaking to reporters, Chairman and Managing Director Glenn Saldanha said, 'This deal puts India on the world map. There is no parallel to ₹6,000 crore upfront payment.' He added that the deal ranks among the top out-licensing deals in the antibody space globally. Notable recent deals include 3SBio Inc. and Pfizer's $6 billion licensing deal for global rights (excluding China) to develop, manufacture, and commercialize 3SBio's bispecific antibody SSGJ-707. This deal involved an upfront payment of $1.2 billion to 3SBio.
Roopal Thakkar, MD, Executive Vice-President, Research and Development, and Chief Scientific Officer at AbbVie, said, 'Multispecifics, including trispecific antibodies, represent a new frontier in immuno-oncology with the potential to deliver deeper, more durable responses by engaging multiple targets simultaneously.'
Glenmark expects the molecule to transform the multiple myeloma space, which could become a $50 billion market by 2030. The asset may take another 4-5 years to be commercialized if timelines are met.
ISB 2001's competitors include Pfizer and J&J's already launched drugs for multiple myeloma.
Looking ahead, IGI is likely to pursue an IPO, but nothing is immediately on the cards, Saldanha said. The research arm is self-funded for at least the next three to four years, as it uses $70 million annually.
Saldanha also mentioned that the ₹6,000 crore would definitely be used to fund IGI's pipeline of investigational assets, with some amount to be paid as a dividend to Glenmark shareholders. Glenmark had a net debt of ₹400 crore before the deal, and Saldanha stated they would now be net-cash.
Saldanha has fought a long battle to pursue his ambitions around innovation and has already tasted success with several key partnerships forged with players like Almirall and Astria for innovation assets.
Glenmark has had its tryst with managing R&D spending, debt, and cash flows over the years. In 2019, Glenmark spun off its research unit into a separate subsidiary to de-risk its investments, reduce debt, and improve focus on the core business. Earlier, cash flows from the base business were deployed in the high-risk innovation programme, which many analysts had felt was a drag on shareholder value.
Motilal Oswal analyst Tushar Manudhane noted recently that Glenmark is on track to optimise R&D spending on its innovation assets. From 8 per cent (₹800 crore) of total sales in FY19, the company reduced innovation R&D spend to 4.5 per cent (₹600 crore) in FY24, and further to 3.5 per cent of sales in 9MFY25, Manudhane said.
IGI had entered into an exclusive global licensing agreement for another innovation asset, ISB 880 in autoimmune diseases, with Spanish firm Almirall in December 2021. Glenmark received $320 million for upfront payment, development, regulatory, and sales milestone payments, plus tiered royalties on global sales. In another major deal, IGI entered an exclusive global licensing agreement for ISB 830 and its follow-on ISB 830-X8 (monoclonal antibody for atopic dermatitis) with Astria Therapeutics in October 2023. In January 2025, Astria announced the initiation of a Phase-1 clinical trial of STAR0310, a potential best-in-class OX40 antagonist for the treatment of Atopic Dermatitis. Glenmark received €20.8 million for the upfront payment, plus development, regulatory, and sales milestone payments, and tiered royalties on global sales.