Monday, October 29, 2007

Amgen Spins Out Biotech Firm

Thousand Oaks-based Amgen has spun out a biotech firm from Ilypsa, the firm the company acquired in July this year. Relypsa, which is based in Santa Clara, California, said that Amgen will maintain a minority equity stake in the new company, which just garnered $33M in a venture financing. Amgen acquired Ilypsa in June for $420M in cash, for access to Ilypsa's treatments for kidney disease. Jay Hagin of Amgen will sit on the board of the new company, and the company said Amgen will also gain certain rights to the transferred programs.