IGI Therapeutics SA

New Delhi: Glenmark Pharmaceuticals will turn net cash positive on its licensing deal with AbbVie Inc, according to S&P Global Ratings on Thursday. The agreement will further strengthen the company's financial position and liquidity, reversing results that led to a reported net debt of Rs 4.9 billion last year, it said in a statement. On July 11, 2025, Glenmark, through wholly-owned subsidiary IGI Therapeutics SA, announced an exclusive licensing agreement with AbbVie for ISB 2001 , a lead investigational asset , developed by IGI, targeted for the treatment of cancer and autoimmune diseases. "Following the transaction, we expect Glenmark's adjusted debt to decline to Indian rupee (INR) 10 billion-11 billion in fiscal 2026," S&P Global Ratings said. This will help offset higher working capital outflow than expected, which fuelled negative operating cash flow in fiscal 2025, it added. Consequently, Glenmark's adjusted debt rose to about Rs 28 billion in fiscal 2025, compared with Rs 18.1 billion in fiscal 2024. "We estimate revenue will increase about 10 per cent in fiscal 2026 and 9-11 per cent annually for the following three years on new product launches and steady performance of the company's core portfolio," S&P Global Ratings said. Further, it said: "We expect Glenmark's EBITDA margins to remain stable during this period without sizable remediation costs. Also, working capital outflow should moderate to Rs 12 billion-Rs 14 billion in fiscal 2026." Glenmark could be upgraded if its business position improves materially amid a significant rise in revenue accompanying persistently higher profitability, it noted.

AbbVie will be gaining rights to IGI Therapeutics’ lead candidate for oncology and autoimmune diseases in an exclusive licensing agreement worth over $1.9bn. ISB 2001 is a trispecific T-cell engager currently in phase 1 clinical development for relapsed or refractory cases of multiple myeloma, an incurable blood cancer affecting more than 36,000 people in the US every year. AbbVie will receive exclusive rights to develop, manufacture and commercialise the drug across Europe, North America, Japan and Greater China. In exchange, the Ichnos Glenmark Innovation subsidiary will receive $700m upfront and will be eligible for up to $1.225bn in milestone payments, as well as royalties on net sales. Roopal Thakkar, executive vice-president, research and development and chief scientific officer at AbbVie, said: “Multispecifics including trispecific antibodies represent a new frontier in immuno-oncology with the potential to deliver deeper, more durable responses by engaging multiple targets simultaneously.” Developed using IGI’s proprietary BEAT protein platform, ISB 2001 targets BCMA and CD38 on myeloma cells and CD3 on T cells. Phase 1 data presented at this year’s American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting showed that the candidate demonstrated a sustained overall response rate of 79% and a high complete/stringent complete response rate of 30% at active doses of at least 50µg/kg in patients with heavily pretreated relapsed/refractory myeloma. The drug has already been orphan drug and fast track designations by the US Food and Drug Administration for relapsed/refractory myeloma. IGI’s president and chief executive officer, Cyril Konto, said: “ISB 2001 exemplifies the potential of our BEAT protein platform to generate effective multispecifics that may overcome resistance and improve outcomes in hard-to-treat cancers. “… Our partnership with AbbVie accelerates ISB 2001’s path to patients and sharpens our focus on advancing the next generation of BEAT-enabled assets in oncology.” The agreement is not AbbVie’s first trispecific antibody deal of the year after it partnered with Simcere Zaiming in January to develop SIM0500, which is also in early-stage clinical development for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma. The candidate is designed to target GPRC5D, BCMA and CD3, and has already demonstrated strong T cell cytotoxicity against multiple myeloma cells by leveraging a combination of various anti-tumour effects.

AbbVie will gain exclusive rights to develop, manufacture and market ISB 2001 across several major regions. Credit: JHVEPhoto/Shutterstock. Ichnos Glenmark Innovation subsidiary IGI Therapeutics has signed an exclusive licensing agreement with AbbVie for ISB 2001, a cluster of differentiation 38 (CD38) B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) and CD3 trispecific antibody for treating oncology and autoimmune diseases. AbbVie will gain exclusive rights to develop, manufacture and market this IGI’s investigational asset across North America, Europe, Japan and Greater China. Subject to regulatory approval, IGI will receive $700m in upfront payment from AbbVie. IGI will also be entitled to up to $1.225bn based on development milestones and regulatory and commercial targets, along with tiered double-digit royalties calculated based on net sales figures. AbbVie research and development executive vice-president and chief scientific officer Roopal Thakkar stated: “Multispecifics including trispecific antibodies represent a new frontier in immuno-oncology with the potential to deliver deeper, more durable responses by engaging multiple targets simultaneously. “This partnership with IGI reflects our unwavering commitment to advancing novel therapies for patients with multiple myeloma, a disease where significant unmet need remains despite recent progress.” GlobalData Strategic Intelligence US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate? Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis. By GlobalData Learn more about Strategic Intelligence ISB 2001, developed using IGI’s BEAT protein platform, is a tri-specific T-cell engager designed to target BCMA and CD38 on myeloma cells and CD3 on T cells. It features two distinct binders that target myeloma-associated antigens, for enhancing avidity even at low expression levels and aiming to improve safety compared to first-generation bispecific antibodies. IGI president and CEO Cyril Konto stated: “ISB 2001 exemplifies the potential of our BEAT protein platform to generate effective multispecifics that may overcome resistance and improve outcomes in hard-to-treat cancers. “Our partnership with AbbVie accelerates ISB 2001’s path to patients and sharpens our focus on advancing the next generation of BEAT-enabled assets in oncology.” AbbVie has recently agreed to acquire Capstan Therapeutics for $2.1bn, enhancing its pipeline with a clinical-stage in vivo chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) candidate. Pharmaceutical Technology Excellence Awards - Have you nominated? Nominations are now open for the prestigious Pharmaceutical Technology Excellence Awards - one of the industry's most recognised programmes celebrating innovation, leadership, and impact . This is your chance to showcase your achievements, highlight industry advancements , and gain global recognition . Don't miss the opportunity to be honoured among the best - submit your nomination today! Nominate Now