NEW YORK, Nov 4 — Pfizer filed a second lawsuit yesterday accusing Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk of structuring its US$9 billion (RM37.8 billion) bid for Metsera to stall the entry of the biotech firm’s obesity treatments into the market rather than being aimed at closing a deal.
Novo and Metsera rejected Pfizer’s claims, marking a dramatic escalation in the fight for control of the biotech startup. A judge is expected to analyse the complaints today.
Pfizer had agreed in September to pay up to US$7.3 billion for Metsera — which is developing next-generation obesity drugs — after a private bidding war with Novo that lasted months.
Metsera rejected Novo’s offer six times, citing antitrust concerns as Novo already dominates a large share of the market. But last week, after Novo’s top investor overhauled the board, the Danish company launched a new unsolicited rival bid.
In a surprising turn, Metsera said Novo’s offer was superior and gave Pfizer until today to submit a higher bid.
Pfizer then sued Metsera’s board and Novo in Delaware’s Court of Chancery on Friday, before filing an antitrust lawsuit in Delaware federal court yesterday. The state court case, assigned to Vice Chancellor Morgan Zurn, will be heard this morning.
Metsera accused Pfizer of gaming the schedule by not suing earlier, saying the company knew of Novo’s bid on October 25. It called Pfizer’s allegations “nonsense,” pledging to respond in court.
Novo said it had adhered to all restrictions under the merger agreement, adding: “We are confident that the facts and the law are on our side. Pfizer’s suggestion that Novo Nordisk would impair or potentially stop an emerging US competitor is absurd and not based on facts, common sense, or market realities.”
Metsera’s obesity drug under development promises monthly injections, compared with the weekly doses required for Novo’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound and Mounjaro.
Pfizer is banking on Metsera to help it enter an obesity market analysts forecast could soon reach US$150 billion annually.
In its latest lawsuit, Pfizer alleged Novo was using a 30-month “outside date” in its offer — the period before either party can terminate the merger — to delay Metsera’s market entry for GLP-1-targeting drugs dominated by Novo and Lilly.
Pfizer said its own deal with Metsera had a nine-month timeline and received early termination of antitrust review on October 31, accusing Novo of using restrictive covenants to block Metsera’s clinical progress.
“Something is clearly rotten in the state of Denmark,” Pfizer wrote in its complaint, referencing Shakespeare’s Hamlet to underscore its view of Novo’s motives following the recent board purge by its controlling shareholder.
Metsera shares fell 3.7 per cent to close at US$60.73 yesterday. Pfizer shares ended flat, while Novo shares slipped less than one per cent. — AFP
