Gilead Sciences, a leading California-based biopharmaceutical company, announced the acquisition of CGI Pharmaceuticals for $120 million. CGI is a privately-held pharmaceutical company that specializes in small molecule chemistry and kinase biology for oncology and immunology and has a library of small molecule kinase inhibitors.

“The acquisition of CGI represents a unique opportunity to expand our research efforts in an interesting and promising area of drug discovery," said Norbert W.
Bischofberger, PhD, Gilead's Executive Vice President, Research and Development and Chief Scientific Officer in a statement. "CGI has established itself in the area of protein kinase biology and small molecule discovery, and the company's scientific leadership and expertise represents a strong strategic fit with Gilead's existing research organization. We look forward to advancing compounds in CGI's portfolio toward clinical development."

"We are pleased to join the Gilead organization and look forward to partnering with the company to deliver on the promise of selective kinase inhibitors in our proprietary library of compounds," said Mark Velleca, MD, PhD, Founder and Senior Vice President of CGI in a statement. "We are confident that Gilead's knowledge and experience developing small molecule candidates for a range of clinical indications will be instrumental in helping to progress our compounds toward clinical development for diseases where tremendous unmet medical need exists."

Gilead will purchase CGI for $120 million in a combination of payment upfront and clinical development progress financed through cash on hand. The transaction will be complete by the third quarter, after the transaction has passed regulatory scrutiny. CGI will maintain its operations in Branford, Connecticut and will be a wholly owned subsidiary of the parent company, Gilead.

Source: Gilead Sciences