Germany's Merck KGaA agrees to buy UK biotech Silence Therapeutics for about $1.3 billion

German science and technology group Merck KGaA has agreed to buy London-based biotechnology company Silence Therapeutics in an all-cash deal that values Silence at about US$1.3 billion, the two companies announced on Monday 19 October.

Merck will pay US$20 for each of Silence’s Nasdaq-listed American depositary shares, which Silence said is a 130% premium to their closing price on Friday 16 October. The deal has an enterprise value of US$1.1 billion, according to Merck, which said it will fund the purchase with new debt.

The main asset is divesiran, an experimental treatment for polycythemia vera, a rare blood cancer in which the body makes too many red blood cells. Merck said the drug met its main goal in a Phase 2 trial and is ready for Phase 3 testing.

“Following the acquisition of SpringWorks Therapeutics last year, we continue to transform our pipeline toward areas of high specialization and unmet medical need,” Merck chief executive Kai Beckmann said.

Silence chairman Iain Ross said the agreement was “the result of a competitive sale process”. Shareholders holding about 14% of Silence’s voting power have agreed to vote in favour, the companies said.

The deal will be carried out through a UK scheme of arrangement and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027, subject to Silence shareholder approval, a UK court’s sanction and regulatory approvals. Silence employs about 80 people in the UK, the US and Germany, Merck said.