Astellas Pharma Inc. yesterday announced that it has successfully completed the acquisition of IVERIC bio, Inc. with respect to the announcement on April 30, 2023, through its indirect wholly-owned subsidiary Berry Merger Sub, Inc. The Acquisition was completed on July 11, 2023, US Eastern Time, as follows, and Iveric Bio has become Astellas’ wholly-owned subsidiary.
The completion of the Acquisition followed the satisfaction of all conditions, including approval by Iveric Bio’s shareholders at a special meeting of Iveric Bio’s shareholders held on July 6, 2023, US Eastern Time, and receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals. In connection with the Acquisition, shares of Iveric Bio’s common stock were delisted from NASDAQ.
“We are very pleased to welcome Iveric Bio and its highly experienced professionals in the ophthalmology field, as a member of Astellas,” said Naoki Okamura, President and CEO, Astellas. “By combining the capabilities of Astellas and Iveric Bio, we will potentially contribute to millions of patients around the world who are suffering from ophthalmologic diseases with fear of vision loss.”
“Today marks an exciting new chapter for Iveric Bio,” said Glenn P. Sblendorio, CEO, Iveric Bio. “We want to thank the outgoing Iveric board for their dedicated work over the years and most importantly, we greatly appreciate the support of the Iveric shareholders.”
“We believe that along with our colleagues at Astellas, we are well-positioned to become the leader in the development and commercialization of differentiated treatments for retinal diseases,” said Pravin U. Dugel, President, Iveric Bio. “We are excited about the opportunities that are before us as both companies combine existing strengths and prepare for the potential approval and launch of Avacincaptad Pegol for the treatment of Geographic Atrophy secondary to Age-Related Macular Degeneration, a devastating disease that leads to irreversible blindness.”
