Post by : Badri Ariffin

Pfizer has officially sealed a $10 billion deal to acquire obesity drug developer Metsera, putting an end to a high-stakes bidding war with rival Novo Nordisk that gripped the pharmaceutical industry this past week.

The New York-based pharma giant will pay $86.25 per share in cash, which includes $65.60 upfront and a contingent value right of up to $20.65 per share, depending on future milestones. The offer represents a 3.69% premium over Metsera’s closing price on Friday.

This acquisition marks a major strategic move for Pfizer, which has long sought a foothold in the fast-growing weight-loss drug market — an area dominated by Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly. Pfizer’s earlier in-house efforts to develop effective obesity treatments had fallen short, making Metsera’s promising drug pipeline an attractive target.

Metsera’s leading experimental drugs — MET-097i, a GLP-1 injectable, and MET-233i, an amylin-mimicking compound — are expected to deliver combined peak sales of around $5 billion, according to analysts. Both drugs target metabolic pathways similar to those powering the success of Wegovy and Mounjaro, the blockbuster drugs from Novo and Lilly.

Novo Nordisk, which had made a last-minute counteroffer to regain ground in the obesity segment it once led, has now been edged out. Metsera’s board stated that Novo’s bid carried “unacceptably high legal and regulatory risks,” favoring Pfizer’s more straightforward cash offer.

The acquisition escalated dramatically from Pfizer’s initial $7.3 billion offer in September, reflecting how competition for promising obesity treatments has intensified. With the deal finalized, Pfizer is betting big on Metsera’s science to help it re-enter one of pharma’s most lucrative markets — one expected to exceed $100 billion globally by the end of the decade.

While Metsera remains unprofitable as its drugs are still in development, Pfizer’s financial muscle and global reach could fast-track their path to approval and commercialization. The agreement now heads to Metsera’s shareholders for approval, setting the stage for one of the most significant biotech acquisitions of the year.

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