Business
Voyager Therapeutics Announces License Option Agreement with Novartis for Target-Specific Access to Next-Generation TRACER™ AAV Capsids for Gene Therapy Programs
Voyager receives $54 million upfront with potential option exercise fees and milestone payments of up to $1.7 billion plus product sales-based royalties
About this update from Voyager Therapeutics, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"Voyager receives $54 million upfront with potential option exercise fees and milestone payments of up to $1.7 billion plus product sales-based royalties Novartis receives target-specific access to Voyager’s novel TRACER AAV capsids for potential use with three CNS targets plus options to access capsids for two additional targets Agreement marks the second recent major transaction leveraging Voyager’s TRACER capsid discovery platform Conference call and webcast today at 8:30 a.m. ET CAMBRIDGE, Mass., March 08, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Voyager Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: VYGR), a gene therapy company developing life-changing treatments and next-generation adeno-associated virus (AAV) capsids, today announced an agreement through which Novartis (NYSE: NVS) may exercise options to license novel AAV capsids generated from Voyager’s RNA-driven TRACERTM (Tropism Redirection of AAV by Cell-type-specific Expression of RNA) capsid discovery platform for potential use with three undisclosed CNS targets and options to access capsids for two additional targets to be agreed on in the future. Voyager will receive $54 million upfront and is entitled to receive up to $37.5 million in exercise fees for options for three initial CNS targets, exercisable by Novartis within 12 months of signing. In addition, Novartis may elect to evaluate capsids for up to two additional targets to be agreed on in the future, subject to their availability, for $18 million upon selection of each target, and a $12.5 million exercise fee for selection of a capsid for each target. Voyager is also eligible to earn up to $1.5 billion in potential development, regulatory, and commercial milestones for products utilizing Voyager licensed capsids, as well as mid- to high-single-digit tiered royalties based on net sales of Novartis products incorporating the licensed capsids. “This transaction further validates the potential of the Voyager TRACER capsid discovery platform to broadly enable a next generation of AAV gene therapies,” said Allen Nunnally, chief business officer of Voyager. “Our collaboration with Novartis expands the array of therapeutic programs in which our proprietary capsids may be deployed and highlights the potential of our TRACER platform to generate future business development opportunities as our novel capsid library expands and initial TRACER-derived ca...