Bristol-Myers Nears Deal to Buy ImClone

20-Sep-2001

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co is near a pact to buy a 19.9 percent stake in biotech company ImClone Systems Inc for $1 billion to help the pharmaceutical giant maintain a large role in the development of cancer treatments, the Wall Street Journal's online edition reported on Wednesday. The board of Bristol-Myers (NYSE:BMY - news) had approved the transaction, the report said. The ImClone (Nasdaq:IMCL - news) board was scheduled to meet on Wednesday afternoon and a formal announcement could come after the market closed on Wednesday. A spokesman for Bristol-Myers declined to comment and an ImClone representative could not be reached for comment, the article said. Bristol-Myers also would pay ImClone $1 billion in so-called milestone payments and it would gain rights to market ImClone's promising IMC-C225, people familiar with the deal said. ImClone has submitted IMC-C225 to the U.S. food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) for approval to treat colorectal cancer. The New York company is also testing IMC-C225, a monoclonal antibody intended to regulate the growth of cells, to fight other forms of cancer. According to the newspaper, under the agreement, Bristol-Myers would have marketing rights to C225 in the U.S. and Canada. ImClone immediately would win access to Bristol Myers' sales force. The deal would be structured as a tender offer, with Bristol-Myers tendering for 19.9 percent of ImClone's shares at a price of $70 each, said the people familiar with the matter.

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