NADPH oxidases 1 and 4 inhibitors (GenKyoTex)

Japanese conglomerate Asahi Kasei has launched a $1.1-billion cash bid to acquire Swedish biotech Calliditas Therapeutics as it looks to beef up its pharmaceuticals business.The offer of SEK 208 ($19.72) per share represents an 83% premium to Calliditas' closing stock price on Monday. The Calliditas board has unanimously recommended that shareholders accept the tender offer, noting that "with Asahi Kasei as its new strategic owner, the company aims to realise the benefits of being part of a larger platform."Calliditas' lead product is Tarpeyo (budesonide), the only fully-approved treatment shown to reduce the loss of kidney function in adults with primary IgA nephropathy (IgAN) who are at risk of disease progression. The drug was granted full FDA approval in December and has received conditional approval in Europe under the name Kinpeygo, while Calliditas plans to seek approval in Asia.The Swedish biotech's pipeline also includes setanaxib, a NOX1/4 inhibitor currently in Phase II development for fibrotic rare diseases and solid tumours.For Asahi Kasei, whose main products up to now have been in chemicals and materials, the acquisition aligns with its strategy to accelerate growth in its pharma division. The company said it "aims to expand its businesses globally through specialising in the areas of immunology, transplantation, and adjacent diseases."The tender offer period expected to begin around mid-July and expire at the end of August. Shareholders of Calliditas holding 45% of the shares have undertaken to accept the deal.Vertex Pharmaceuticals also broadened its kidney disease pipeline with an IgAN candidate earlier this year through the $4.9-billion buyout of Alpine Immune Sciences and its lead candidate povetacicept. For more on that, see – Vital Signs: Dissecting dealmaking at Vertex and its Alpine takeout.