AstraZeneca PLC / Bristol-Myers Squibb Company / Amylin diabetes alliance

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

$3.0B Global GLP-1 receptor agonist class market (~$3B at deal time)

Disease Overview

Type 2 diabetes is a chronic metabolic disease characterized by insulin resistance and progressive beta-cell dysfunction, leading to chronic hyperglycemia and cardiovascular, renal, retinal, and neurologic complications. The GLP-1 receptor agonist class promotes glucose-dependent insulin secretion, suppresses glucagon, slows gastric emptying, and supports weight loss — addressing multiple disease drivers simultaneously.

Competitive Landscape

At the June 2012 deal, the GLP-1 class was already a $3B global market in active reshuffling. Amylin's Byetta (twice-daily exenatide), launched in 2005, peaked at $678.5M in 2008 but had been rapidly losing share to Novo Nordisk's Victoza (liraglutide, once-daily, launched Feb 2010), which captured 26% of GLP-1 prescriptions and 33.9% of new starts within months and ultimately took ~two-thirds market share (cbsnews.com). The strategic prize was Bydureon (exenatide extended-release), the first and only once-weekly GLP-1, FDA-approved Jan 27, 2012 — five months before this deal — using Alkermes' proprietary microsphere technology, priced at $323/month vs. Victoza's $421. Lilly's dulaglutide (Trulicity) and Sanofi's lixisenatide were in late-stage development. Amylin also held metreleptin (later Myalept), a leptin analog for severe lipodystrophy. AstraZeneca's $3.4B payment to enter a 50/50 profit share alongside BMS — following BMS's $5.3B Amylin acquisition — gave AZ instant scale in GLP-1 to complement its Onglyza/Kombiglyze DPP-4 franchise. The structure was unwound 18 months later when AZ paid BMS to take full ownership in Dec 2013, signaling that the joint-venture model underdelivered relative to the price paid.