Gilead Company Kite to buy Interius BioTherapeutics for USD 350 million

This acquisition complements Kite's expertise in cell therapy by incorporating Interius's integrating in vivo platform. This approach enables the generation of CAR T-cells directly within the patient’s body and may offer a more durable and long-lasting therapeutic effect by inserting DNA into the patient’s genome. Unlike traditional CAR T therapies that require cell harvesting, engineering and reinfusion, Interius’s innovative, off-the-shelf yet personalized approach is designed to be delivered via a single intravenous infusion, eliminating the need for preconditioning chemotherapy and complex cell processing.

“In vivo therapy is a promising frontier with the potential to transform how we approach treating patients, shifting to more accessible and scalable solutions,” said Cindy Perettie, Executive Vice President of Kite. “By combining Interius’s teams and their novel platform with Kite’s deep expertise and footprint in cell therapy research, development and manufacturing, we aim to advance best-in-class in vivo therapies to bring them to patients more efficiently.”

The modular architecture of Interius’s platform allows for rapid adaptation across disease states and scale of manufacturing, enabling the potential to expand access to cell therapies for patients who previously could not benefit from them, particularly those with rapidly progressing disease.

“This marks a pivotal step for Interius and the future of in vivo therapy, which has the potential to reduce treatment timelines, broaden access to care and improve outcomes for patients with aggressive or advanced disease,” said Phil Johnson, President and CEO, Interius BioTherapeutics. “With the addition of Kite’s deep expertise and global infrastructure, we’re well-positioned to move quickly into multiple therapeutic areas, expand access to cell therapies and deliver meaningful innovation to patients.”

Interius’s team and operations will integrate into Kite’s established research team, creating a center of excellence in Philadelphia to accelerate the development of next-generation in vivo therapies.

Under the terms of the acquisition agreement with Interius, Kite will acquire all of the outstanding share capital of Interius for a total of $350 million in cash consideration, subject to customary adjustments, which is payable at closing. This transaction with Interius is expected to reduce Gilead’s GAAP and non-GAAP 2025 EPS by approximately $0.23-$0.25. Closing of the transaction is subject to expiration or termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act and other customary conditions.

TD Cowen is acting as exclusive financial advisor to Kite and Evercore is serving as exclusive financial advisor to Interius.