Swedish Orphan Biovitrum AB has signed an acquisition agreement to buy Arthrosi Therapeutics in a transaction valued at up to $1.5 billion, Viva Biotech said. Under the terms disclosed, Sobi will pay $950 million upfront at closing, subject to customary adjustments, plus up to $550 million in contingent consideration tied to future milestones. The companies expect the transaction to close in the first half of 2026.
Viva Biotech, which invested in and incubated Arthrosi, said it expects the merger to generate an aggregate gain of approximately $40 million, with the final amount dependent on the fulfillment of regulatory and performance milestones. Viva Biotech also said Arthrosi has entered into a new statement of work with Viva Biotech’s CDMO business unit, Langhua Pharmaceutical, to supply active pharmaceutical ingredient, and that the group expects to continue business cooperation with Arthrosi following the deal.
Arthrosi is developing pozdeutinurad (AR882), an investigational next-generation, once-daily oral URAT1 inhibitor intended to reduce serum urate levels, flares, and dissolve tophi in gout and tophaceous gout patients. Sobi said the acquisition is designed to strengthen its gout franchise by adding AR882, which is currently being evaluated in two fully recruited global Phase 3 clinical studies for the potential management of progressive and tophaceous gout, with data expected to read out in 2026.
Sobi framed the program as a potential option for patients who remain suboptimally treated with first-line therapies. And the company said the addition of a potentially best-in-class URAT1 inhibitor aligns with its longer-term growth ambitions. Viva Biotech, for its part, positioned the transaction as a validation of its investment and incubation model in the global innovative drug sector, noting its involvement in Arthrosi from the seed round onward and its ongoing collaboration with the team across R&D, manufacturing, and industry resource integration.
Arthrosi is headquartered in San Diego, California. Viva Biotech noted that the rights to pozdeutinurad in Greater China are held by ApicHope.
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“The acquisition of Arthrosi allows us to expand our gout pipeline with a highly differentiated new asset”, said Guido Oelkers, President and CEO of Sobi. “Pozdeutinurad has the potential to become the therapy of choice for patients who have progressive gout with persistent and unresolved symptoms despite first-line therapy. The product has the potential to materially accelerate our growth until the mid 2030s, and beyond. We welcome all members of the talented Arthrosi team and are looking forward to working closely together to be able to offer this therapy to patients as soon as possible.”
Guido Oelkers, President and CEO of Sobi
“We are thrilled to join forces with Sobi and look forward to working together to ensure a seamless transition as they advance pozdeutinurad towards pivotal data and potential regulatory filings. We believe that Sobi’s global expertise in commercialization will accelerate our shared mission to deliver pozdeutinurad’s potentially transformative benefits for individuals living with gout”, stated Litain Yeh, Ph.D., Founder and CEO of Arthrosi Therapeutics.
Litain Yeh, Ph.D., Founder and CEO of Arthrosi Therapeutics
“We are very pleased to see Arthrosi reach this milestone with the acquisition by Sobi. Viva Biotech started to participated in Arthrosi from the seed round onward and remained a long-term investors across multiple subsequent rounds. As an industrial partner, Viva Biotech has also maintained long-term and in-depth collaboration with the team in areas across R&D, manufacturing, and global industry resource integration. We have witnessed Arthrosi’s continued focus on solving the unmet medical need of gout, marked by clear and disciplined scientific and clinical decision-making. This acquisition fully reflects the dual realization of industrial and clinical value, further validating the feasibility of Viva Biotech’s investment and industry empowerment model in the global innovative drug sector. We sincerely congratulate Arthrosi and Sobi on their collaboration, and extend sincere congratulations to the two founders of Arthrosi — Dr. Litain Yeh and Dr. Shunqi Yan. We look forward to the continued long-term value creation of this project within a larger industrial platform. And we also thank ApicHope and all shareholders for their continued support and trust throughout the company’s journey.”
Dr. Han Dai, Chief Innovation Officer and Head of Viva BioInnovator
