Despite a confident tone when Novo Nordisk CEO Mike Doustar visited American President Donald Trump, the Danish company now appears to have lost a major bidding war to Pfizer.
It will be the American pharmaceutical giant that gets to buy the biotech company Metsera. This was revealed in a release issued by Metsera’s board early Saturday Danish time.
In it, the board recommends that its shareholders accept Pfizer’s purchase offer. An offer of around 10 billion dollars. Metsera’s board is concerned that it would pose legal issues to let Novo Nordisk take over the company.
The board writes that it recently received a communication from the American competition authority, the Federal Trade Commission, which warned of »potential risks« in proceeding with plans to allow Novo Nordisk to purchase the company.
Therefore, Metsera’s board writes in the release:
»The transaction proposed by Novo Nordisk presents unacceptably high legal and regulatory risks to Metsera and its stockholders compared to the proposed merger with Pfizer«.
Confident in the White House
There has been a direct bidding war between Pfizer and Novo Nordisk in recent weeks. In September, it seemed that Pfizer was close to purchasing Metsera, but then Novo Nordisk made a bid, and both companies have since raised their bids.
The entire affair was mentioned in the White House on Wednesday when Novo Nordisk’s CEO, Mike Doustar, was visiting. Novo Nordisk and archrival Eli Lilly were visiting Donald Trump to present a new agreement between the companies and the U.S. government on lower prices for weight-loss medication. And here, Trump asked about Novo Nordisk’s potential purchase of Metsera.
»As of today, our bid is higher, and our message to Pfizer is that if they would like to buy the company, then put your hand in the pocket and bid higher«, Mike Doustar said.
Metsera makes weight-loss medication using the increasingly familiar active ingredient GLP-1. But where patients have to inject themselves once a week with Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound, Metsera’s MET-097i requires only a monthly injection.
However, the drug is not yet available at pharmacies. In fact, it hasn’t even reached phase 3, which is the final trial stage before a product can hit the market.
But the potential for patients to only need a monthly injection is seen as a significant advantage for future patients and a competitive parameter for pharmaceutical companies. Therefore, Metsera is attractive to Pfizer and Novo Nordisk.
Metsera is expected to begin phase 3 trials by the end of 2025.
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