23andMe will maintain providing clients its DNA testing companies after being purchased out of chapter. New York-based biotech firm Regeneron Prescription drugs announced an agreement on Monday to buy the 23andMe startup for $256 million, alongside its Whole Well being and Analysis Companies enterprise and biobank of buyer knowledge and genetic samples.
Regeneron is the winner of 23andMe’s chapter public sale, which required all bidders to adjust to relevant legal guidelines and the agency’s privateness insurance policies round buyer knowledge. 23andMe says that buyer knowledge is anonymized and that saved genetic samples are destroyed when users delete their 23andMe accounts, however it’s unclear how a lot info is retained and should, subsequently, quickly be in Regeneron’s palms.
The acquisition is anticipated to shut later this yr, topic to US Chapter Courtroom approval. If all goes forward, Regeneron co-founder George D. Yancopoulos says the acquisition will additional the corporate’s “large-scale genetics analysis” into future medication and coverings.
23andMe has collected genetic samples and knowledge from greater than 15 million clients since launching its at-home DNA testing package enterprise. As soon as briefly valued at $6 billion after going public in 2021, the corporate filed for bankruptcy in March after failing to show a revenue. Its co-founder and former CEO, Anne Wojcicki, concurrently stepped down from the corporate.
“We’re happy to have reached a transaction that maximizes the worth of the enterprise and permits the mission of 23andMe to stay on, whereas sustaining essential protections round buyer privateness, selection, and consent with respect to their genetic knowledge,” stated 23andMe chair Mark Jensen. “We’re grateful to Regeneron for providing employment to all workers of the acquired enterprise models, which can permit us to proceed our mission of serving to folks entry, perceive, and acquire well being advantages by way of larger understanding of the human genome.”
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