Novartis Buys Blood-Disorder Drug Owner for Up to $665 Million

Novartis AG, Europe’s second-biggest drugmaker, exercised an option to buy closely held Selexys Pharmaceuticals Corp. for as much as $665 million to gain an experimental drug to treat a rare inherited blood disorder.

Novartis decided to buy Oklahoma City, Oklahoma-based Selexys after it published promising mid-stage trial data showing a medicine called SelG1 helped patients with a painful complication of sickle cell disease, the Basel, Switzerland-based company said in a statement Monday. The $665 million deal includes an upfront sum as well as acquisition and milestone-related payments.