Samsung Biologics has announced an all-cash tender offer to acquire PolyPeptide Group AG for approximately CHF 1.46 billion $1.8 billion , marking its largest-ever acquisition and strategic entry into the peptide therapeutics market, particularly GLP-1 treatments for obesity and diabetes.
Samsung Biologics, a contract development and manufacturing organization CDMO based in South Korea, has made public its plan to acquire PolyPeptide Group AG. The deal is structured as an all-cash tender offer valued at approximately CHF 1.46 billion, which translates to $1.8 billion. This move represents the most ambitious acquisition in Samsung Biologics' history and signals a deliberate strategic pivot into peptide therapeutics, one of the fastest-growing segments in the pharmaceutical industry.
The offer is set at CHF 44.31 per share, which is equivalent to $54.65 per share. Samsung intends to purchase 100% of PolyPeptide's fully diluted share capital, with the exception of treasury shares. The board of directors of PolyPeptide has given its unanimous recommendation in favor of the offer. Additionally, PolyPeptide's largest shareholder, which holds approximately 55.65% of the outstanding shares, has committed to an irrevocable tender undertaking, meaning it will tender its shares regardless of other developments.
The acquisition is designed to position Samsung Biologics to capitalize on the surging demand for peptide-based therapies. In particular, the market for glucagon-like peptide-1 GLP-1 treatments used in obesity and diabetes management has seen explosive growth. By acquiring PolyPeptide, Samsung gains immediate entry into this high-growth arena while also expanding its capabilities beyond its traditional focus on antibodies and antibody-drug conjugates ADCs .
A spokesperson for Samsung Biologics explained the company's rationale to BioXconomy. "We have been pursuing a strategy to expand our portfolio beyond our core antibody CDMO business into high-growth new modalities such as peptides, including GLP-1s. As part of this effort, we have decided to acquire PolyPeptide, a global peptide CDMO," the spokesperson said. They added that demand for new peptide drugs is rising rapidly, driven recently by treatments for obesity and diabetes, and that the peptide CDMO market continues to show robust growth. The spokesperson noted that through this acquisition, Samsung Biologics aims to immediately secure proven peptide manufacturing capabilities and a solid customer base, allowing the company to enter this high-growth market in earnest and establish long-term growth engines.
PolyPeptide brings more than seven decades of active pharmaceutical ingredient API manufacturing heritage to the table. Throughout its history, the CDMO has produced over 1,000 therapeutic peptides. The company is headquartered in Switzerland and operates an integrated development-to-commercial model across a global network of sites. Its manufacturing facilities are located in Sweden, Belgium, France, the United States, and India. Additionally, PolyPeptide maintains a corporate office in Switzerland and an innovation center in Strasbourg, France.
The deal represents far more than a simple expansion of manufacturing capacity. PolyPeptide's late-stage pipeline of active peptide projects offers Samsung Biologics immediate commercial opportunities. The combination of Samsung's financial strength and global reach with PolyPeptide's specialized expertise creates a formidable player in the peptide CDMO space.
Peter Wilden, chairman of PolyPeptide's board of directors, commented on the transaction. "After a comprehensive review of strategic options, the board is convinced that Samsung Biologics' offer is compelling for our shareholders, delivering an attractive cash price and immediate, certain value today," Wilden said. He further described the acquisition as a transformational opportunity that will accelerate PolyPeptide's strategic ambitions at a scale the company could not reach on its own.
John Rim, chairman of the board of directors and CEO of Samsung Biologics, also provided his perspective. "We highly value PolyPeptide's world-class employees, industry-leading capabilities, and global operational footprint, and look forward to leveraging the complementary strengths of PolyPeptide and Samsung Biologics in our continued growth supporting clients as the CDMO of choice for decades to come," Rim stated.
The transaction is expected to close toward the end of 2026, subject to customary conditions. Samsung Biologics plans to launch the formal tender offer by the end of August 2026 with the publication of the offer prospectus. Under Swiss takeover law, the offer will be subject to a mandatory ten-day cooling-off period. After that period, the offer will remain open for a minimum of twenty trading days on the SIX Swiss Exchange.
Once the acquisition is successfully completed, Samsung Biologics intends to pursue a "squeeze-out" of any remaining minority shares. This would be followed by delisting PolyPeptide from the SIX Swiss Exchange, making it a wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung Biologics.
The acquisition underscores the growing importance of peptide therapeutics in the pharmaceutical landscape. By combining Samsung Biologics' financial resources and global infrastructure with PolyPeptide's decades of expertise and established customer relationships, the deal creates a powerful new force in the CDMO market. The focus on GLP-1 treatments, in particular, positions the combined company to serve the massive and rapidly expanding market for obesity and diabetes therapies.
As the pharmaceutical industry increasingly turns to peptides as a versatile and effective modality for treating a wide range of diseases, the timing of this acquisition appears strategic. Samsung Biologics, already a major player in antibody manufacturing, is now making a decisive move to become a leader in peptide manufacturing as well. The integration of PolyPeptide's operations into Samsung's global network will be a key focus in the coming months as the companies work toward closing the deal by the end of 2026.
Peptides referenced: Glucagon, GLP-1.
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