Horizon Pharma has agreed to sell Raptor Pharmaceuticals, which owns the rights to Quinsair levofloxacin inhalation solution in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, to Chiesi Farmaceutici for $70 million and potential sales-based milestone payments, the company said. Horizon will retain rights to Quinsair and another product, Procysbi, in the US, Canada, and Latin America.
Raptor acquired European and Canadian rights to Quinsair from Tripex Pharmaceuticals in 2015 and launched the product in Europe in April 2016. Horizon acquired Raptor in October 2016.
Chiesi CEO Ugo Di Francesco said, “The acquisition of the marketing rights for Procysbi and Quinsair will further strengthen our rare disease offering in the EMEA regions. We have a strong commitment to the rare disease area and this is an important opportunity to enhance our portfolio and contribute to improve the quality of life of nephropathic cystinosis and cystic fibrosis patients.”
Horizon Pharma President and CEO Timothy P. Walbert commented, “Following the Raptor acquisition at the end of last year, we completed an evaluation of the commercial infrastructure required to provide Procysbi and Quinsair in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and determined that these medicines would be best supported by a company with a larger geographic footprint.”
According to Horizon, Raptor Pharmaceuticals has about 40 employees as well as facilities in the Netherlands, France and Germany.
Read the Horizon Pharma press release.
