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iStock, z_wei Edgewise Therapeutics will now focus on a handful of cardiovascular programs including EDG-7500 for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy thanks to the non-dilutive capital from France’s Servier. Servier is buying Edgewise Therapeutics’ muscular dystrophy business for up to $2.65 billion, the second multi-billion-dollar rare disease deal from the French pharma this year after snapping up Day One Biopharmaceuticals in March. Servier will pay $1.55 billion upfront with $1.1 billion down the line in potential milestone payments to gain access to Edgewise’s fast skeletal myosin inhibitor sevasemten and related capabilities, according to Servier’s Monday morning release . The drug is being tested in the Phase 3 GRAND CANYON trial for Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD) and in Phase 2 for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). Both diseases are X-linked genetic disorders that cause progressive loss of muscle function, with DMD characterized as more severe with a life expectancy of about 30 years, according to Servier. In March, Edgewise presented data at the Muscular Dystrophy Association meeting showing the potential for improved functional performance on sevasemten. If ultimately approved, the therapy would be the first available for BMD. DMD, on the other hand, has some limited options including products from Sarepta Therapeutics, but plenty of unmet need remains in the space. “This transaction is designed to place the program in the hands of an organization with the experience and infrastructure to support its continued development for people living with Becker and Duchenne muscular dystrophies,” Edgewise CEO Kevin Koch said in a statement. Clinical research MDA 2026: Biogen, Sarepta, Edgewise Address Muscle Disorders Data presented at the 2026 Muscular Dystrophy Association meeting could have readthroughs to companies developing therapies for spinal muscular atrophy, Duchenne muscular dystrophy and Becker muscular dystrophy. March 12, 2026 · 3 min read · Tristan Manalac Read more This is the second time this year Servier has struck an acquisition in the neuro space after buying all of Day One a few months ago. That transaction, worth $2.5 billion, centered on the FDA-approved pediatric brain cancer asset Ojemda. Servier is focused on oncology, neurology and cardiometabolic diseases. With the muscular dystrophy business gone, Edgewise will center its efforts around its cardiovascular programs, with proceeds from the Servier transaction fully funding hypertrophic cardiomyopathy asset EDG-7500 through potential approval, according to a separate release from Edgewise. Stifel declared the deal “surprising—and very favorable.” Truist Securities called it “a good deal,” providing Edgewise with non-dilutive capital and sharpening the pipeline. The biotech’s shares rose more than 15% to $39.53 as the markets opened Monday. Edgewise’s cardiovascular work had been investors’ focus anyway, with “sevasemten either under the radar or met with skepticism,” Truist noted. The firm believes the BMD indication could achieve worldwide unadjusted peak sales of $1 billion but provided no estimate for DMD. Duchenne muscular dystrophy REGENXBIO, Novartis, Dyne near FDA submissions in muscular dystrophies Analysts homed in on Duchenne muscular dystrophy and myotonic dystrophy type 1 assets during first quarter earnings as major players like REGENXBIO and Novartis as well as Dyne, Wave, Solid and Sarepta near the regulatory finish line. May 26, 2026 · 9 min read · Heather McKenzie Read more “Given the focus on EDG-7500, sevasemten has gotten little attention and we think generally many (including us) were relatively skeptical on BMD,” Stifel wrote. “As such, $1.55B upfront (with none of the clinical risk) is a big win and ascribes more value than what we think was in the stock.” Last year, the FDA declined to review an early application for sevasemten based on data from the Phase 2 CANYON study. Twelve-week data from the Phase 2 CIRRUS-HCM trial of EDG-7500 are due in the second quarter of the year, Edgewise reported on Monday. These data are expected to inform the company’s Phase 3 plans, with a trial set to initiate in the fourth quarter. The company is also working to initiate a Phase 2 trial of EDG-15400 in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction. With the riskier sevasemten program out of the way, Stifel now believes Edgewise has been tidied up for a potential acquirer interested in the cardiovascular programs.

Dive Brief:French pharmaceutical firm Servier has agreed to acquire the muscular dystrophy business of a Colorado-based biotechnology company in a deal that could be worth nearly $2.7 billion.The main asset in the acquisition is sevasemten, an experimental, first-of-its-kind tablet designed to protect fragile muscles by inhibiting a protein that causes fast, powerful muscle contractions. The drugs developer, Edgewise Therapeutics, has advanced it into mid-stage studies for Duchenne muscular dystrophy as well as pivotal testing for another rare disorder called Becker muscular dystrophy.In a statement, Servier said this drug could make it a global player with strong capabilities in neuromuscular disorders. The company will pay Edgewise $1.55 billion in cash up front, and has offered as much as $1.1 billion more if certain regulatory and commercial goals are hit.Dive Insight:Servier has, for the past decade, been in what it describes as a state of deep transformation. While previously focused almost entirely on diseases that affect the heart, blood vessels and metabolic system, the company has broadened its lens to include oncology and, more recently, neurology.To build a greater presence in those research areas, Servier has turned to dealmaking. It bought a potential treatment for Fragile X syndrome from Kaerus Biosciences in September. Then, in March, it announced the roughly $2.5 billion acquisition of cancer drugmaker Day One Biopharmaceuticals. That deal gave Servier a couple clinical-stage assets along with Ojemda, an approved medicine for certain hard-to-treat brain tumors that affect children.Servier recorded 6.9 billion euros, or roughly $7.9 billion, in its most recently completed fiscal year, which stretched from October 2024 through September 2025. The company is on a mission dubbed Servier 2030 to, by the start of the next decade, be a more innovative developer, have a rich pipeline and boast a product portfolio that generates at least 10 billion euros worth of revenue annually.Olivier Laureau, Serviers president, in that Monday statement said the Edgewise purchase is a key step forward to achieve our Servier 2030 ambition in neurology, as it provides the company with a team of talented experts and a promising asset in muscular dystrophies.As for Edgewise, the deal not only brings a balance-sheet-strengthening infusion of cash, it also marks a turning point. The biotech said that, once the transaction completes, it will cement Edgewise as a cardiovascular-focused developer with a pipeline comprised of three core drugs.The farthest along of those, EDG-7500, is in a mid-stage study where researchers are evaluating it as a treatment for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a disease in which a thickening of the heart muscle makes pumping blood more difficult. Edgewise said one part of the study is on track to produce data by the end of June. Those results should inform the design of a Phase 3 study set to kick off sometime in the final three months of this year.Egdewise believes its existing cash, plus the upfront proceeds from the Servier deal, will be able to fully fund EDG-7500 through development and its potential approval. They should also get a separate drug meant for a type of heart failure through key value-inflection points.Edgewise shares were up almost 11%, to around $38 apiece, in late morning trading Monday.According to RBC Capital Markets analyst Leonid Timashev, the sevasemten sale is a prudent decision for Edgewise, greatly improving the companys cash position while allowing it to concentrate on a highly promising asset in EDG-7500.While sevasemten had shown striking data (particularly in Becker), the drug was not necessarily fully valued by [Wall] Street due to perceived risk and challenges in the space, Timashev wrote in a note to clients.Even so, sevasemten constituted a significant portion of Edgewises value. The RBC team was bullish on the drug, estimating peak annual sales of $2.2 billion. As such, the Servier deal would most likely be fair value neutral if all milestones are reached, Timashev noted. '