Bain buys Mitsubishi pharma unit; Bausch + Lomb deal talks come up empty
Today, a brief rundown of news involving Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma and Bausch + Lomb, as well as updates from Roche, Viracta Therapeutics and X4 Pharmaceuticals that you might have missed.
Investment firm Bain Capital agreed on Friday to acquire Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma in a deal that values the nearly 350-year-old pharmaceutical arm of Japan’s Mitsubishi Chemical Group at about $3.3 billion. The deal will see the firm separated from its corporate parent where, as a standalone company, it will continue developing vaccines as well as drugs for neurological, cardiometabolic and immunological conditions. In explaining the buyout’s rationale, Bain Capital partner Ricky Sun said, in a statement, that there are “promising signs for growth and untapped opportunities in Japan’s life sciences industry,” citing moves by the government and regulators to speed drug development. Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma is headquartered in Osaka and employs more than 5,000 people globally. — Ben Fidler
Bausch + Lomb will remain a subsidiary of Bausch Health after sale talks failed to yield an acceptable deal, according to Thursday’s announcement. Last year, the company, which sells eye drugs, drops and contact lenses, said it intended to explore a potential sale in an effort to separate itself from its corporate parent. On Thursday, it revealed that that process led to an indication of interest from a private equity firm. The boards of both entities, though, said Bausch + Lomb didn’t receive an offer that reflected its “long-term value.” Bausch Health will keep its 88% stake for the time being, but “full separation remains the goal,” Bausch + Lomb said. — Gwendolyn Wu
A combination of Roche’s Gazyva and standard therapy helped preserve the kidney function of 46% of people with lupus nephritis in a Phase 3 trial, versus 33% of those who received typical care alone, the company said Friday. The detailed results of the so-called Regency trial, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, could help Swiss drugmaker win regulatory clearance to use Gazyva — which is approved for lymphoma — to treat lupus as well. Roche is sharing the data with health authorities in the U.S. and Europe. It initially declared success in the trial in September. — Jonathan Gardner
X4 Pharmaceuticals will let go of about 30% of its workforce, or 43 employees, in a bid to focus resources around its top drug program, the company said Thursday. Through the restructuring, the company will pause early drug research, shutter a facility in Vienna, Austria and streamline spending to support development and commercialization of mavorixafor, which is approved as Xolremdi for the rare disease WHIM syndrome and in late-stage testing in chronic neutropenia. X4 also intends to grow its sales and marketing team. The moves are expected to reduce annual spending by $30 million to $35 million and extend X4’s ability to operate into 2026. — Delilah Alvarado
Viracta Therapeutics will lay off its entire workforce of around 16 people and stop operating, the company said Wednesday. The company’s board appointed Craig Albert as president and CEO to lead the wind-down while seeking a buyer for its main asset, an experimental drug combination that’s been tested in cancers linked to the Epstein-Barr virus. Viracta implemented two layoff rounds in 2024 to preserve cash, which totaled $13 million at the end of September. It went public in 2020 by merging with Sunesis Pharmaceuticals.— Jonathan Gardner
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