AriBio licenses Alzheimer’s pill to Arcera in $600 mil. deal as merger partner Solux surges

Korean biotech AriBio has handed over regional rights to its experimental Alzheimer’s drug in a deal worth up to $600 million, aligning with Arcera to drive commercialization across Latin America, the Middle East, Southern Africa, Ukraine, and parts of Eurasia.

Announced Tuesday, the licensing and supply agreement gives Arcera and its Swiss affiliate Acino exclusive rights to market AR1001 (mirodenafil), while AriBio retains manufacturing control. Arcera, backed by UAE sovereign wealth fund ADQ, plans to anchor its growing neuroscience portfolio around the once-daily oral PDE5 inhibitor.

“This agreement aligns with our strategy to expand our neuroscience portfolio,” Arcera CEO Isabel Afonso said in Tuesday's release, citing a focus on “regions with significant unmet needs.”

Originally licensed from SK chemicals in 2011, AR1001 is being developed to slow Alzheimer’s progression by targeting tau hyperphosphorylation and improving cerebral blood flow.

The drug is currently in a global phase 3 trial that has enrolled more than 1,500 patients across 13 countries, exceeding its initial target. Topline data are expected in the first half of 2026.

The Arcera tie-up follows a memorandum of understanding signed in March to explore further investment and co-development. AriBio said talks are also ongoing for licensing deals in North America, Europe, and Japan.

With the latest agreement, AriBio has secured nearly 1.94 trillion won ($1.42 billion) in total deal value, including a 1.02 trillion won pact with an unnamed Chinese partner last March and a 100 billion won agreement with Korea’s Samjin Pharmaceutical in 2023.

“Arcera’s strong commercial capabilities and deep understanding of high-growth markets make them an ideal partner,” said AriBio CEO Choung Jai-jun.

News of the deal rippled into local markets. Shares of Solux -- a Korean LED firm in the process of merging with AriBio -- surged 28.39 percent Tuesday, closing at 5,540 won ($4.05), as investors bet on momentum ahead of the Aug. 26 merger.