LifeCycle Pharma A/S announced that the royalty stream in North America related to its first commercialized product, Fenoglide, the cholesterol lowering drug (formerly known as LCP-FenoChol) for the treatment of hyperlipidemia and hypertriglyceridemia, has been sold to Cowen Healthcare Royalty Partners, LP. (CHRP) for a total payment of up to USD 105 million based on certain sales milestones including an upfront payment of USD 29 million. Fenoglide was launched at the US in February 2008 and is marketed by Sciele Pharma Inc.
According to the terms of the agreement, effective July 1st, 2008, all future royalty and a potential milestone payments related to Fenoglide in North America due to LCP from Sciele Pharma shall now be made to CHRP. LCP remains obligated under this agreement to prosecute certain patent rights related to Fenoglide.
"We are very pleased with the confidence Cowen Healthcare Royalty Partners is showing our first marketed product by purchasing the rights to the Fenoglide royalty stream. We are proud to be one of the very few Danish specialty pharmaceutical companies who have taken a product directly to the US primary care market," says Hans Christian Teisen, executive vice-president and chief financial officer of LCP. "The sale of the royalty stream provides LCP with solid financial resources to continue our own development of our promising pipeline and it is a significant step towards our strategy of becoming a fully integrated specialty pharmaceutical company within the transplantation field."
"The fenofibrate market continues to grow at a steady pace and we believe Fenoglide, as the lowest dose product available in the US to reduce cholesterol levels, is well positioned for long-term growth," says Todd Davis, co-founder and managing director of CHRP. "Our investment in Fenoglide reflects a growing need for companies to have more financial flexibility to fund development and commercialization activities and we were able to accomplish that with this significant royalty monetization."
Fenoglide is the lowest dose of fenofibrate products currently marketed in the United States and is available in 40 mg and 120 mg tablets. Fenoglide utilizes LCP's proprietary MeltDose Technology, a clinically validated reformulation technology, designed to provide improved absorption and bioavailability of the drug.
LCP is an emerging specialty pharmaceutical company that, through innovative technologies, is able to rapidly develop a portfolio of differentiated products to meet the unique needs of key therapeutic markets and patient populations.
Cowen Healthcare Royalty Partners (CHRP) is a healthcare private equity firm with over USD 500 million under management. The firm invests principally in commercial-stage biopharmaceutical and medical device companies through the purchase of royalty or Synthetic Royalty(SM) interests, debt and equity.