CAMBRIDGE, Mass.– Blackstone Life Sciences and Anthos Therapeutics, Inc. (“Anthos” or the “company”), a transformative, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative therapies for the treatment of cardiometabolic diseases, announced today that the company has entered into an agreement with Novartis to acquire Anthos for up to $3.1 billion. Anthos was founded by Blackstone Life Sciences and Novartis in 2019 with the exclusive global rights from Novartis to develop, manufacture, and commercialize abelacimab, a novel factor XI inhibitor that originated at Novartis, being developed to prevent stroke and systemic embolism in patients with atrial fibrillation as well as to prevent the recurrence of blood clots in patients with cancer.
“Abelacimab has the potential to be an important treatment option for the millions of patients globally with atrial fibrillation at high risk of stroke, and we could not have more conviction in the potential of this asset,” said Bill Meury, Chief Executive Officer at Anthos. “With its deep roots in the cardiovascular space, Novartis is especially well positioned to advance abelacimab’s clinical development and bring this innovative product to healthcare providers and patients. I am deeply grateful to the Anthos and Blackstone Life Sciences teams, the clinical investigators, the patients in our studies, the advocacy community, and many others who have played a role in Anthos’ success over the past six years.”
“We are proud to have launched and helped grow Anthos by acquiring the rights to abelacimab, assembling a world class team, designing the clinical plan and financing its development,” said Dr. Nicholas Galakatos, Chairman of Anthos’ Board of Directors and Global Head of Blackstone Life Sciences. “We believe abelacimab has the potential to be a leader in the new class of Factor XI anticoagulants and are pleased to have Novartis as a committed partner to advance the development and commercialization of abelacimab as a potential treatment option for the millions of patients at risk of strokes. This transaction is an affirmation of Blackstone Life Sciences’ ownership investment strategy, where we seek to find innovative products and build companies around them to meet unmet patient needs.”
In AZALEA-TIMI 71, abelacimab compared with rivaroxaban (Xarelto) demonstrated a 62% reduction in major bleeding or clinically relevant non-major bleeding, a 67% reduction in major bleeding, and an 89% reduction in gastrointestinal bleeding. The overall clinical benefit of abelacimab prompted the Independent Data Monitoring Committee to discontinue the study early. Results from AZALEA-TIMI 71 were recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine on January 23, 2025.
Anthos is currently conducting a phase 3 clinical study in patients with atrial fibrillation with high risk for stroke or systemic embolism (LILAC-TIMI 76) as well as two phase 3 studies in patients with cancer-associated thrombosis (ASTER and MAGNOLIA). Data from these trials are expected in the second half of 2026.
Blackstone Life Sciences’ investment in and commitment to Anthos demonstrate the power of combining its scale and deep operating expertise to build businesses that can help bring innovative products to market and substantially improve patient outcomes.
