Novartis Splits Off Generic Drug Division 'Sandoz'

[Asia Economy Reporter Chunhee Lee] Novartis announced on the 25th (local time) that it will spin off Sandoz, its generic and biosimilar business unit, as a new independent publicly listed company through a 100% corporate division.

Novartis explained the spin-off by stating, "This is to grant Sandoz an independent position as a global leader in the generic and biosimilar fields to maximize shareholder value," and added, "Novartis shareholders will be able to invest in future positive business opportunities in both Sandoz and Novartis' innovative pharmaceuticals business unit."

Sandoz currently has a portfolio of eight biosimilars including ▲Omnitrope (Genotropin biosimilar) ▲Erelzi (Enbrel biosimilar) ▲Binocrit (Eprex biosimilar) ▲Zarxio (Neupogen biosimilar) ▲Ziextenzo (Neulasta biosimilar) ▲Rixathon (MabThera biosimilar) ▲Hyrimoz (Humira biosimilar) ▲Zessly (Remicade biosimilar).

In addition, Sandoz is independently developing 'GP2411 (Prolia biosimilar)' and 'SOK583A1 (Eylea biosimilar)' and has a pipeline of more than 15 biosimilars through collaborations with various companies. Novartis plans for Sandoz to achieve continuous growth based on a solid and experienced management team and corporate organization, while Novartis will focus on innovative drug development with a stronger financial position and improved return on capital.

After the spin-off, Sandoz will be headquartered in Switzerland and listed on the Swiss stock exchange. It will operate an American Depositary Receipt (ADR) program for the U.S. market.

Joerg Reinhardt, Chairman of the Novartis Board, said, "After a strategic review considering all possibilities for Sandoz, we concluded that a 100% corporate spin-off is the best value for shareholders," adding, "Through this spin-off, shareholders can expect the future success potential of both the focused management Novartis and the separately spun-off Sandoz, and establish more differentiated and clear investment strategies for the two companies."

Vas Narasimhan, CEO of Novartis, said, "With the Sandoz spin-off, Novartis can evolve into a more focused innovative pharmaceutical company concentrating on five core therapeutic areas and with strengths in technology platforms," and added, "Both companies will be able to maximize shareholder value creation through prioritizing capital and resource allocation, introducing independent capital policies, and strengthening management focus on their respective businesses."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.