BioNTech to buy fellow German mRNA firm CureVac

The German mRNA firm BioNTech has announced that it will buy local rival CureVac in an all-stock transaction that values CureVac at around $1.25 billion. Once complete, CureVac will be wholly absorbed into BioNTech.

Although BioNTech expanded its focus to include a variety of cancer-targeting options, both firms were founded on the promise of messenger RNA as a vehicle for treating cancer. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the companies pivoted to trying to develop an mRNA vaccine against the disease. BioNTech’s version, developed with Pfizer, became a success, but CureVac’s COVID-19 vaccine did not, and the firm subsequently sold its vaccine arm to GSK.

CureVac wasn’t forced into this deal by a lack of cash, however. The company has approximately €438.3 million ($507.9 million) cash on its balance sheet, enough to tide it over until 2028, according to its first-quarter financial results published on May 20. BioNTech and CureVac have been involved in patent disputes over rights related to mRNA technology, and the next hearing is scheduled for July 1 in the Düsseldorf Regional Court.

In a statement to accompany news of the acquisition, CureVac CEO Alexander Zehnder said that “for more than two decades, both companies have operated with related ambitions, often tackling challenges from different angles. This transaction aims at combining complementary scientific capabilities, proprietary technologies, and manufacturing expertise in the mRNA field under one roof.”

BioNTech has continued to strengthen its position in oncology. The company recently agreed to a deal with Bristol Myers Squibb that netted it $1.5 billion upfront, and in February, it completed its acquisition of Chinese biotech firm Biotheus.

“This transaction is another building block in BioNTech’s oncology strategy and an investment in the future of cancer medicine,” said Uğur Şahin, CEO and cofounder of BioNTech, in the same statement.

The company and its founders are seen as German success stories. Just yesterday, Şahin and his wife and company cofounder Özlem Türeci were in Berlin, where German Chancellor Friedrich Merz presented the pair with the 2025 German National Prize.