Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. said Wednesday it has entered into an exclusive license agreement with privately-held Vir Biotechnology to develop and sell RNAi therapeutics for infectious diseases, including hepatitis B virus infection. As part of the agreement, Alnylam will receive an upfront payment of cash and Vir shares, and will be eligible for milestone payments of more than $1 billion. “We believe the innovative structure of this deal, including the right for Alnylam to opt into a profit-sharing arrangement prior to the start of Phase 3 for HBV, gives us both strategic flexibility in our committed spend and retention of significant product value,” said Alnylam Chief Executive John Maraganore. The stock, which was indicated up over 5% in premarket trade, has more than tripled year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 14%.
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