Gilead acquires CAR-T specialist Arcellx for $7.8bn

Gilead has agreed to get Arcellx successful a woody worthy $7.8bn, arsenic the drugmaker looks to adhd a CAR T-cell therapy for humor crab attraction connected the cusp of support to its portfolio.

As per the agreement, Gilead volition wage $115 per share, arsenic good arsenic a 1 contingent worth close of $5 each. The woody is expected to adjacent successful Q2 2026.

The acquisition marks the culmination of a play of collaboration betwixt the 2 companies. In 2022, Gilead, via its subsidiary Kite, entered a probe and improvement concern with Arcellx to beforehand the latter’s anitocabtagene autoleucel (anito-cel), an investigational BCMA-directed CAR T-cell therapy for patients with aggregate myeloma. Gilead had invested successful the biotech arsenic portion of the statement and, having injected further currency successful 2023, presently holds a 11.5% stock successful Arcellx.

Anito-cel, delivered ex vivo, is presently nether reappraisal by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), with an anticipated Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) enactment day of 23 December 2026. If approved, it volition beryllium disposable arsenic a fourth-line attraction for patients with relapsed oregon refractory aggregate myeloma. The $5 contingent worth close (CVR) included successful the acquisition volition beryllium paid retired if planetary anito-cel income deed $6bn by the extremity of 2029.

In a probe note, William Blair analysts said: "We besides exemplary anito-cel achieving $7.8bn successful cumulative planetary income by year-end 2029, truthful we presumption the CVR arsenic apt to beryllium achieved."

Gilead’s CEO Daniel O’Day said: “This statement reflects our condemnation successful the imaginable of anito-cel and our volition to determination with velocity truthful we tin marque the astir of that imaginable for patients with aggregate myeloma.

"Beyond the imaginable motorboat this year, anito-cel could go a foundational attraction for aggregate myeloma implicit time, including earlier lines of therapy. In addition, the anito-cel D-domain BCMA binder could beryllium important to our enactment successful in vivo compartment therapy, further strengthening our imaginable successful oncology and inflammation,” O’Day added.

CAR T is simply a benignant of personalised immunotherapy that treats definite humor cancers by reprogramming a patient's ain T-cells to recognise and destruct crab cells. While each approved CAR-T products are ex vivo, pharma involvement toward in vivo compartment therapies has grown, which immoderate investors are touting arsenic the aboriginal of CGT. This way of transportation has dominated M&A enactment successful the CAR-T arena successful the past year.

The astir caller large pharma institution to ink a woody was Eli Lilly, which acquired Orna Therapeutics and its scope of circular RNA (circRNA) and lipid nanoparticle-based therapies for $2.4bn successful February 2026. Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) made a akin determination by laying retired $1.5bn to get Orbital Therapeutics and its investigational, RNA-based in vivo CAR-T medicines successful October 2025. In July 2025, AbbVie made an in vivo play done its $2.1bn, “high-risk, high-reward” buyout of Capstan Therapeutics. Unlike galore companies successful the space, which are focused connected processing CAR Ts for oncology, Capstan is progressing its pipeline of in vivo therapeutics for the attraction of B-cell mediated autoimmune diseases.