- Israel-based BioLineRx (NASDAQ:BLRX) enters into a strategic collaboration with Novartis (NVS) to designed to facilitate the development and commercialization drug candidates identified by BioLineRx. The companies will co-develop up to three pre-clinical and early clinical therapeutic product candidates through clinical proof-of-concept. Projects reaching the clinical stage will be eligible for selection by Novartis. If selected, it will pay BioLineRx an option fee of $5M as well as fund 50% of the remaining development costs associated with establishing clinical proof-of-concept. The funding will be in the form of an additional equity investment in BioLineRx.
- As part of the agreement, Novartis has made an initial equity investment in BioLineRx of $10M (5M BLRX ADSs at $2.00 per share) which represents a 12.8% stake.
- BLRX is up 17% premarket on modest volume.