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Top 10 BioPharma M&A Deals of 2025

If you’re tracking where biopharma strategics deployed capital in 2025, the top end of M&A is the cleanest signal. Below are the 10 largest deals in our 2025 $500M+ biotech M&A tracker (public + private targets), ranked by reported total deal value.

Top 10 total value
$85.9B
Median deal size
$9.4B
Smallest in Top 10
$3.5B
Stage skew
Commercial + late-stage
(where disclosed)
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1
Johnson & Johnson → Intracellular Therapies $14.6B
Date: 2025-01-13 Subsector: Biotech TA: CNS / Psychiatry Stage: Commercial Upfront: $14,600m Total: $14,600m
Why it happened: A big, de-risked CNS/Psychiatry bet with commercial footing—strategics still pay for “already working” when the category is attractive.
What matters next: commercial trajectory and lifecycle expansion.
2
Novartis → Avidity Biosciences $12.0B
Date: 2025-10-26 Subsector: Biotech TA: Neurology / Neuromuscular Stage: Phase 3 Upfront: $12,000m Total: $12,000m
Why it happened: A late-stage platform/asset grab in neuromuscular/neurology—buyers will pay up for differentiated delivery + credible paths to registration.
What matters next: how quickly the acquirer can broaden the platform and compress timelines.
3
Pfizer → Metsera Up to $10.0B
Date: 2025-11-07 Subsector: Biotech TA: Metabolic / Obesity Stage: Phase 2 Upfront: $7,000m Total: $10,000m
Why it happened: Metabolic/obesity remains a capital magnet; big outcomes still get underwritten—often with milestone-heavy structures.
What matters next: milestone path clarity and differentiation as the category crowds.
4
Merck & Co. → Verona Pharma $10.0B
Date: 2025-07-09 Subsector: Biotech TA: Respiratory Stage: Commercial Upfront: $10,000m Total: $10,000m
Why it happened: A commercial-stage respiratory bet at meaningful scale—fits the “buy revenue + expansion optionality” playbook.
What matters next: launch durability and payer dynamics as competitors respond.
5
Sanofi → Blueprint Medicines $9.5B
Date: 2025-06-02 Subsector: Biotech TA: Immunology / Rare disease Stage: Commercial Upfront: $9,100m Total: $9,500m
Why it happened: A strategic adjacency purchase in rare disease/immunology with proven execution—buyers still pay for “clean” commercial platforms.
What matters next: integration without disrupting momentum; clarity on the next growth driver.
6
Merck & Co. → Cidara Therapeutics $9.2B
Date: 2025-11-14 Subsector: Biotech TA: Infectious Disease Stage: Phase 3 Upfront: $9,200m Total: $9,200m
Why it happened: Infectious disease deals tend to happen when a platform offers scalable optionality across pathogens/indications.
What matters next: clinical execution and whether the headline value is reachable.
7
Genmab → Merus $8.0B
Date: 2025-09-29 Subsector: Biotech TA: Oncology Stage: Phase 3 Upfront: $8,000m Total: $8,000m
Why it happened: An oncology consolidation move—strategics still pay up for differentiated biology and late-stage credibility.
What matters next: pipeline prioritization and whether the combined platform accelerates time-to-market.
8
Novo Nordisk → Akero Therapeutics Up to $5.2B
Date: 2025-10-09 Subsector: Biotech TA: Metabolic / Liver Stage: Phase 3 Upfront: $4,700m Total: $5,200m
Why it happened: Liver/metabolic is a “must-own” adjacency; this is pipeline reinforcement with late-stage stakes.
What matters next: pivotal outcomes and competitive positioning.
9
Merck KGaA → SpringWorks Therapeutics $3.9B
Date: 2025-04-28 Subsector: Biotech TA: Oncology / Rare disease Stage: Commercial Upfront: $3,900m Total: $3,900m
Why it happened: A bolt-on oncology/rare-disease buy that adds marketed product momentum plus near-term pipeline shots on goal.
What matters next: maintaining launch momentum while accelerating label/pipeline expansion.
10
Roche → 89bio Up to $3.5B
Date: 2025-09-17 Subsector: Biotech TA: Metabolic / Liver Stage: Phase 3 Upfront: $2,400m Total: $3,500m
Why it happened: A late-stage metabolic bet positioned in the obesity-adjacent “gravity well,” with contingent value pushing payout behind commercial execution.
What matters next: pivotal outcomes, regulatory clarity, and competitive positioning in MASH.

What the 2025 top-end tape is really saying

1) Big checks still follow de-risking
The top of the list skews commercial/late-stage—where the debate is more about scale and competitive positioning than basic science.
2) “Up to” structures are doing real work
Even some very large deals lean on contingent value to keep headline size high while pushing payout behind execution.
3) The gravity wells stayed consistent
Metabolic/obesity, oncology, CNS, respiratory, and infectious disease show up repeatedly—these remain the categories where strategics most consistently deploy capital.
Subscribe for the full 2025 biotech M&A tracker ($500M+)
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  • All deals, classifications, stages and sources
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