Novartis has entered into a worldwide exclusive license agreement with Zonsen PepLib Biotech for an internally developed peptide-based radioligand therapy asset. Under the deal, Novartis will assume all development and commercialization responsibilities, leveraging its established radioligand therapy infrastructure to advance the program. PepLib will receive an upfront payment of USD 50 million, with the potential for further development, regulatory and sales milestone payments, as well as tiered royalties on future global net sales. This transaction is intended to complement Novartis’s existing RLT portfolio and accelerate the asset’s progression toward clinical evaluation.

At a major industry conference in San Francisco, Novartis CEO Vasant Narasimhan reiterated that the company will maintain its focus on bolt-on acquisitions to strengthen its portfolio. He emphasized that capital allocation priorities remain unchanged, with continued investment in targeted deals that enhance core franchises in oncology, ophthalmology and neuroscience. Narasimhan noted that since 2020, Novartis has completed more than 10 bolt-on transactions, deploying over USD 5 billion in external innovation to complement internal R&D efforts.

Novartis signed a licensing agreement valued at up to USD 1.7 billion with privately held SciNeuro Pharmaceuticals to develop and commercialize potential antibody treatments for Alzheimer’s disease. The deal includes an upfront payment and development milestones, along with royalties on future net sales. This collaboration is designed to bolster Novartis’s neuroscience pipeline by integrating SciNeuro’s lead antibody candidate, which has shown preclinical promise in targeting neuroinflammation pathways implicated in early Alzheimer’s progression.