SPARC inks agreement to acquire 55% stake in Tiller Therapeutics – CNBC TV18

Sun Pharma Advanced Research Company Ltd (SPARC) on Tuesday, December 17, said it has signed a binding Letter of Intent (LoI) with the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and Tiller Therapeutics Inc to license its rights in a jointly-developed pre-clinical oncology asset.

The agreement also includes the licensing of associated intellectual property (IP) to Tiller Therapeutics for further development and commercialisation, SPARC said in a stock exchange filing.  The oncology asset, developed through a three-year collaboration between SPARC and UCSF, will target the treatment of solid tumors, a critical area of unmet medical need.

Under the terms of the LoI, SPARC will receive a 55% equity stake in Tiller Therapeutics, with equity vesting in two tranches. The first 45% will vest upon the execution of the licence agreement, while the remaining 10% will vest upon achieving certain milestones or within six months of the agreement.

The LoI put in place key terms for Tiller’s development and commercialization of the oncology asset. Further, details of the license agreement, including other terms and conditions, will be finalised in the coming months, the company informed the bourses.

“We are excited about the opportunity to partner with Tiller to advance potential treatment of solid tumors affecting millions each year, with no current cure,” said Anil Raghavan, CEO of SPARC.

Shares of Sun Pharma Advanced Research Company were trading 1.32% lower at ₹227.45 apiece on the BSE at 10:28 am.