Poxel and OrbiMed Strike $50 Million Deal to Monetize TWYMEEG Royalties

 Poxel has struck a $50 million deal with OrbiMed to monetize TWYMEEG royalties.

Takeaway Points

• Poxel and OrbiMed Strike $50 Million Deal to Monetize TWYMEEG Royalties.
• Poxel intends to use the proceeds of the transaction to pursue its activities in the field of rare diseases, reducing the company’s debt towards IPF Partners and the PGE bank.
• The management team will host webinars today, on Sept 30, 2024, at 1:00 pm CEST, Paris time (7:00 am ET) in French, and 8:45 am ET, New York time (2:45 pm CEST) in English. 

What deal did Poxel and OrbiMed strike?

POXEL SA, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative treatments for chronic serious diseases with metabolic pathophysiology, including non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and rare metabolic disorders, on Monday announced that it entered into a non-dilutive financing agreement with OrbiMed for USD 50 million to monetize a portion of Poxel’s future royalties and sales-based payments from TWYMEEG sales by Sumitomo Pharma in Japan. Poxel intends to use the proceeds of the transaction to pursue its activities in the field of rare diseases, reduce the Company’s debt towards IPF Partners and the PGE banks, and finance general corporate purposes. TWYMEEG is Poxel’s first-in-class product marketed for the treatment of type 2 diabetes in Japan.

The management team will host webinars today, on Sept 30, 2024, at 1:00 pm CEST, Paris time (7:00 am ET) in French, and 8:45 am ET, New York time (2:45 pm CEST) in English, Poxel said.

Thomas Kuhn, Chief Executive Officer of Poxel, while commenting about the deal, said, “This transaction with OrbiMed, a leading healthcare investment firm, reflects the significant value of TWYMEEG® in Japan, based on our strategic partnership with Sumitomo Pharma. We are pleased that this transaction strengthens our balance sheet and provides non-dilutive financing to continue our strategic plan in rare diseases and reduce the Company’s debt towards IPF Partners and the PGE banks. We aim to finalize our ongoing advanced discussions with several potential partners for each of our products, before finalizing our investment decisions and executing our development plans for PXL770 and PXL065.” 

Matthew Rizzo, General Partner of OrbiMed, added, “We are delighted to partner with Poxel to provide a non-dilutive source of financing that aligns with our mission to accelerate innovation in the biopharmaceutical industry.” 

Royalty monetization agreement based on TWYMEEG sales with OrbiMed

POXEL said that under the terms of the agreement, the received a gross upfront payment of USD 50 million from the OrbiMed funds in exchange for an issuance of its bonds in the same aggregate amount. From such proceeds, a deposit of USD 7.5 million has been made by the Company into a deposit account, from which USD 1.25 million will be withdrawn quarterly and paid in partial repayment of the bonds issued to OrbiMed until net sales of TWYMEEG® reach JPY 5 billion (USD 31.5 million), at which point OrbiMed will begin to receive sales-based payments and royalties (anticipated in early 2025, based on the expected achievement of this sales threshold by the end of 2024). The residual amount of the deposit will then be available to the Company, in addition to the USD 42.5 million deposit received upon signature of the agreement.

About Poxel SA

Poxel is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative treatments for chronic serious diseases with metabolic pathophysiology, including non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and rare disorders. For the treatment of NASH, PXL065 (deuterium-stabilized R-pioglitazone) met its primary endpoint in a streamlined Phase 2 trial (DESTINY-1). In rare diseases, development of PXL770, a first-in-class direct adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activator, is focused on the treatment of adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) and autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). TWYMEEG® (Imeglimin), Poxel’s first-in-class product that targets mitochondrial dysfunction, is marketed for the treatment of type 2 diabetes in Japan by Sumitomo Pharma and Poxel expects to receive royalties and sales-based payments. Poxel has a strategic partnership with Sumitomo Pharma for Imeglimin in Japan. Listed on Euronext Paris, Poxel is headquartered in Lyon, France, and has subsidiaries in Boston, MA, and Tokyo, Japan.

About OrbiMed

OrbiMed is a leading healthcare investment firm, with approximately $17 billion in assets under management. OrbiMed invests globally across the healthcare industry, from start-ups to large multinational corporations, through private equity funds, public equity funds, and royalty/credit funds. OrbiMed seeks to be a capital provider of choice, providing tailored financing solutions and extensive global team resources to help build world-class healthcare companies. OrbiMed’s team of over 100 professionals is based in New York City, London, San Francisco, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Mumbai, Herzliya, and other key global markets.