Benzinga | Apr 1, 2021 08:04AM EDT

F-star Therapeutics Announces Ares Trading S.A. Has Exercised Its Option To Develop An Additional Bispecific Program Under The Ongoing Collaboration With F-Star

F-star Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSTX), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing next generation bispecific immunotherapies to transform the lives of patients with cancer, today announces that Ares Trading S.A., an affiliate of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany has exercised its option to develop an additional bispecific program under the ongoing collaboration with F-star.



This is the third option to license a preclinical program that Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany has exercised in the ongoing collaboration with F-star. Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany and F-star originally entered into a collaboration agreement in 2019 with the first option to license. In July 2020, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany brought the second program from the collaboration into its pipeline, and today has exercised its third option, taking over future development and commercialization of the program. An undisclosed option exercise payment will be made to F-star. Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany will pay future success-based milestones and royalties on any net sales, resulting from programs covered by the agreement.