Pharma BD Deal Intelligence
Vertex Pharmaceuticals acquired Alpine Immune Sciences for $65 per share, ~$4.9 billion in cash (a ~67% premium and the largest acquisition in Vertex's history at the time), with the deal closing May 20, 2024. The strategic rationale was povetacicept, a dual BAFF/APRIL inhibitor fusion protein, as the centerpiece of Vertex's expansion beyond cystic fibrosis into nephrology and autoimmune disease. The thesis has since been validated: on March 9, 2026 the Phase 3 RAINIER trial in IgA nephropathy met its primary and all secondary endpoints at the Week 36 interim analysis (~52% reduction in urine protein-to-creatinine ratio from baseline; 49.8% vs placebo, P<0.0001), and on June 1, 2026 the FDA accepted Vertex's BLA for accelerated approval with a PDUFA target action date of November 30, 2026 under Breakthrough Therapy Designation. If approved, povetacicept would become the first commercialized product in Vertex's nephrology franchise.