WuXi selling cell therapy unit as BIOSECURE continues to play out

The US-based investment firm has entered into an agreement to acquire the US and UK operations of WuXi AppTec’s Advanced Therapies Unit (ATU), bolstering its presence in the life sciences space.

Altaris will gain a late phase/commercial viral manufacturing facility, a testing laboratory, a non-viral cell therapy plant, and a process development/early phase clinical manufacturing site, all in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The firm has also has a presence in Oxford, UK following its $135 million acquisition of Oxgene in 2021. The acquisition added cell and gene therapy (CGT) discovery and biomanufacturing platforms, including the award-winning adeno-associated virus (AAV) production tech Tetracycline-Enabled Self-Silencing Adenovirus (TESSA), which will be taken over by Altaris.

WuXi AppTec’s other assets will remain unchanged.

Edward Hu, CEO of WuXi ATU, described the deal as “a positive step forward for the vital services that ATU provides.” He added: “Altaris is committed to growing the ATU businesses by supporting its employees, customers and patients.”

The deal, financials of which have not been divulged, is expected to clear in the first half of 2025 and will sit among small molecule ingredient manufacturer Veranova in Altaris’ CDMO portfolio.

The reason behind the sale has not been stated, but it comes months after reports WuXi Apptec and WuXi Biologics – an associated, but separate company – were putting some of their operations up for sale on the back of the US BIOSECURE Act.

The Act, which aims to block certain Chinese companies – including WuXi Apptec and WuXi Biologics – from working with US-based biopharma, became the soundtrack of the outsourcing space in 2024.

The bill passed in the US House of Representatives with strong bipartisan support (306-81) in September, and its repercussions are expected to ramp up if it passes in the Senate. Under current terms, the Act will give US firms until 2032 to sever ties with Chinese suppliers.