Merck KGaA buys Silence Therapeutics for about $1.3B after siRNA Phase 2 win
- Merck KGaA will acquire Silence in an all-cash deal at $20 per ADS, an equity value of about $1.3 billion, via a UK scheme of arrangement.
- The price is a 130% premium to the prior close, and Silence called it the outcome of a competitive sale process.
- The deal follows positive Phase 2 data for Silence's siRNA divesiran in polycythemia vera.
💡 Points
A 130% premium for a single mid-stage asset says Merck KGaA is paying for de-risked rare-haematology data and a validated platform, not for breadth. It needs growth after its portfolio gaps, and siRNA offers a modality it can slot in. Watch whether Silence's platform survives as a standalone engine or just feeds divesiran.
Merck KGaA buys Silence in $1.3B deal after siRNA drug's phase 2 blood cancer win ↗