No Swiss surprise for Surface’s former owners
Today’s quiet discontinuation of NVS930 – the anti-CD73 MAb has disappeared from Novartis’s first-quarter R&D pipeline – eliminates a potential royalty stream for the former holders of Surface Oncology. The asset, formerly coded SRF373, had been licensed by Surface to Novartis in 2016, but a phase 1 trial in combination with the Swiss group’s now-discontinued anti-PD-1 MAb spartalizumab yielded zero responses among 104 patients. As such the discontinuation is hardly surprising, but when Surface was later sold to Coherus for $65m in stock NVS930 featured as one asset that could have delivered upside to Surface’s long-suffering investors. The takeover included contingent value rights, including for 70% of any milestones and royalties due from Novartis under the NVS930 tie-up. A second Surface asset subject to a similar CVR element, the anti-PVRIG MAb GSK4381562 licensed to GSK, remains in play, being studied as part of a triplet with Jemperli and the iTeos-originated anti-TIGIT MAb belrestotug.
Possible contingent value rights (CVRs) accruing to former holders of Surface Oncology
| Asset | Mechanism | Original partner | CVR element under Coherus takeover* | Current status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NZV930/ SRF373 | Anti-CD73 MAb | Novartis, Jan 2016 deal ($170m biodollar value) | 70% of milestones & royalties payable by Novartis | Discontinuation by Novartis confirmed Apr 2024 |
| GSK4381562/ SRF813 | Anti-PVRIG MAb | GSK, Dec 2020 deal, $85m up front ($815m biodollar value) | 70% of milestones & royalties payable by GSK | Ph1 GSK-sponsored trial in combination with PD-1 & TIGIT blockade |
| Casdozokitug (SRF388) | Anti-IL27 MAb | Novartis, Jan 2016 deal (Novartis handed back rights Feb 2019) | 50% of up-front fee from any ex-US licensing deal | Ph1 Coherus-sponsored Keytruda combo trial |
| CHS-114/ SRF114 | Anti-CCR8 MAb | NA | 25% of up-front fee from any ex-US licensing deal | Ph1 Coherus-sponsored Loqtorzi combo trial |
Note: *CVR valid until Jun 2033. Source: Jun 2023 Coherus SEC filing.
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