Ascendis Pharma A/S (Nasdaq: ASND) and Royalty Pharma plc (Nasdaq: RPRX) announced that Ascendis Pharma Bone Diseases A/S, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ascendis Pharma A/S, has entered into a $150 million capped synthetic royalty funding agreement with Royalty Pharma, based on U.S. net sales of YORVIPATH.
“We are excited to once again collaborate with Royalty Pharma, a leading supporter of innovation in the biopharma sector, as we introduce YORVIPATH in the U.S., the first and only FDA-approved treatment for hypoparathyroidism in adults,” said Jan Mikkelsen, Ascendis Pharma’s President and CEO. “This agreement underscores YORVIPATH’s strong value and our commitment to optimizing our capital structure while maintaining the flexibility needed to support our global commercial efforts.”
Pablo Legorreta, founder and CEO of Royalty Pharma, added, “We are thrilled to deepen our partnership with Ascendis and provide funding to back the launch of YORVIPATH, a critical advancement in addressing the root cause of hypoparathyroidism in adults. This marks our second collaboration with Ascendis, highlighting our partner-focused approach and capacity to design innovative, mutually beneficial funding solutions—key elements of our business model.”
As part of the agreement, Ascendis will receive an upfront payment of $150 million in return for a 3% royalty on U.S. net sales of YORVIPATH. The royalty payments will conclude once Royalty Pharma reaches a return of 2.0x on its investment or 1.65x if the target is met by December 31, 2029.
Evercore served as financial advisor, while Latham & Watkins and Mazanti-Andersen acted as legal advisors to Ascendis. Royalty Pharma was represented by Goodwin Procter and Fenwick & West.
About Ascendis Pharma A/S
Ascendis Pharma is applying its innovative TransCon technology platform to build a leading, fully integrated biopharma company focused on making a meaningful difference in patients’ lives. Guided by its core values of Patients, Science, and Passion, Ascendis uses its TransCon technologies to create new and potentially best-in-class therapies. Ascendis is headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark and has additional facilities in Europe and the United States.
About Royalty Pharma plc
Founded in 1996, Royalty Pharma is the largest buyer of biopharmaceutical royalties and a leading funder of innovation across the biopharmaceutical industry, collaborating with innovators from academic institutions, research hospitals and non-profits through small and mid-cap biotechnology companies to leading global pharmaceutical companies. Royalty Pharma has assembled a portfolio of royalties which entitles it to payments based directly on the top-line sales of many of the industry’s leading therapies. Royalty Pharma funds innovation in the biopharmaceutical industry both directly and indirectly – directly when it partners with companies to co-fund late-stage clinical trials and new product launches in exchange for future royalties, and indirectly when it acquires existing royalties from the original innovators. Royalty Pharma’s current portfolio includes royalties on more than 35 commercial products, including Vertex’s Trikafta, GSK’s Trelegy, Roche’s Evrysdi, Johnson & Johnson’s Tremfya, Biogen’s Tysabri and Spinraza, AbbVie and Johnson & Johnson’s Imbruvica, Astellas and Pfizer’s Xtandi, Novartis’ Promacta, Pfizer’s Nurtec ODT and Gilead’s Trodelvy, and 16 development-stage product candidates.
