Glenamrk in "unique" royalty deal

India's Glenmark Pharmaceuticals has announced a unique royalty deal with Paul Capital Partners' Royalty Fund, an international health care investment group. Under the terms of the arrangement, Paul Royalty will invest up to $27.0 million to finance the development of 16 dermatological products by Glenmark for the US market. In return, Paul Royalty will receive undisclosed royalties on net sales following US Food and Drug Administration approval and launch of each product.

The products in the range currently have total US sales revenues of about $1.0 billion and the deal marks the first time that an Indian drugmaker is targeting the US market with an entire portfolio of dermatological products, the company claims.

Under the agreement, Glenmark will be responsible for pre-clinical development, will manage the clinical trials and manufacture the products; the Indian firm will be responsible for filing the Abbreviated New Drug Applications and, on approval, marketing the products in the USA. Glenmark India will also supply active pharmaceutical ingredient for some of the products. Paul Royalty will finance product development through milestone payments to Glenmark over the next two years. In return, the investment fund will receive a royalty on net sales for these products, with the percentage varying by drug and performance.