BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BioMarin) has agreed to acquire Alesta Therapeutics for $275 million upfront and up to $215 million in development and regulatory milestones, for a total of up to $490 million. The transaction has been approved by both companies’ boards and is expected to close this quarter, subject to customary closing conditions.
Alesta’s lead asset, ALE1, is an oral small-molecule therapy for hypophosphatasia (HPP), a rare genetic disease that impairs bone mineralization from birth. The company advanced ALE1 into Phase 1/2a in late 2025. As part of the deal, Alesta’s remaining pipeline will be spun out by its investors into a new company, opening the door to reaching more patients in rare disease.
Thuja Capital and Droia Ventures were Alesta’s first institutional investors, seeding the Leiden-based company in 2021. For Thuja, this was the first investment from its third fund (TCHF III). This acquisition marks that fund’s second exit within six years of its first close, following the sale of EsoBiotec in 2025.
We congratulate Ilan Ganot and the Alesta management team, and thank our co-investors Droia Ventures, Frazier Life Sciences, Novartis Venture Fund, RV Invest, and RTW Investments for their collaboration throughout Alesta’s development.
With BioMarin’s rare disease development and commercialization capabilities behind it, Alesta’s ALE1 is now positioned to advance faster, bringing an oral treatment for hypophosphatasia closer to the patients who need it.
