Freshfields has advised BioNTech AG on a strategic partnership with Genentech, a member of the Roche Group

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP (Freshfields), has advised BioNTech AG, a fully integrated, private biotechnology company that develops personalised cancer immunotherapies, on a global, strategic partnership with Genentech, a member of the Roche Group. Together the firms will develop, manufacture and market personalised messenger RNA (mRNA)-based cancer vaccines.

The partnership will draw on Genentech’s leading cancer immunotherapy portfolio and research program and on BioNTech’s innovative mRNA cancer vaccine technology platform. Together, the two companies will develop personalised cancer immunotherapies, which are designed to treat a broad range of cancer tumours and which offer  cancer patients a new type of treatment.

The collaboration will focus on the development of mRNA cancer vaccines targeting neo-antigens that will be based on BioNTech’s Individualized Vaccines Against Cancer (IVAC®) clinical platform for the potential treatment of multiple cancers. This technology will enable the firms to rapidly analyse a patient’s cancer genome, and identify the unique mutations present in a patient’s tumour. With this data to hand, the firms will then be able to manufacture an mRNA vaccine that has been adapted to treat the specific patient’s tumour.

Under the terms of the agreement, Genentech will pay BioNTech $310 million in upfront and near-term milestone payments. The two companies will share all development costs and any potential profits for programs equally under the agreement. BioNTech has the right to co-promote certain products that arise from the agreement in the United States and in major European markets. Under certain circumstances, BioNTech will have sole commercialisation rights for other products that Genentech chooses not to market. BioNTech will manufacture mRNA cancer vaccines for clinical studies. Genentech will manufacture mRNA cancer vaccines for commercial supply and BioNTech will have the right to manufacture commercial products as part of the global supply network.

The contract is not only one of the largest license deals to have been made within the European biotech market for years, but it is also an important milestone for BioNTech as a leading European biotechnology company. The company was founded in 2008 and already has 450 employees, making it one of the largest biotech companies in Germany today. Following its partnership with Genentech, BioNTech now has access to a worldwide leading oncology company.

Freshfields advises on new partnerships within the biotech and pharmaceutical sector on a regular basis. Prior to the Genentech deal, the same team, led by partner Dr. Jochen Dieselhorst, advised BioNTech on a partnership with Bayer that was designed to drive the development of new mRNA vaccines and therapeutics for animal health applications. It also advised on the collaboration and license agreement with Sanofi and on partnerships with Eli Lilly and Genmab.

The Freshfields team working on this partnership between BioNTech and Genentech consisted of Jochen Dieselhorst, Philipp Dohnke, Lutz Drallé, Bruce McCulloch and Ilana Kattan.