Finance
GSK licenses liver disease drug to italy's alfasigma for up to $690 million
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 9, 2026
1 min readLast updated: March 9, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 9, 2026
1 min readLast updated: March 9, 2026
GSK will receive up to $690 million from Italy’s Alfasigma for global rights to linerixibat, an investigational treatment for severe itch in primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) — including $300M upfront, $100M on US approval, $20M on EU/UK sign‐offs, plus up to $270M in milestones and royalties.
March 9 (Reuters) - GSK said on Monday it will receive up to $690 million from Italian pharmaceutical company Alfasigma for the worldwide rights to linerixibat, an experimental treatment for severe itching in patients with a rare liver disease.
The drug treats cholestatic pruritus, a relentless internal itch affecting patients with primary biliary cholangitis (PBC), an autoimmune disease where the body's immune system attacks bile ducts in the liver.
Alfasigma will pay GSK $300 million upfront plus another $100 million upon expected U.S. approval by March 24. It will pay $20 million when European and UK regulators approve the drug.
GSK is also eligible for up to $270 million in sales milestones and will earn tiered double-digit royalties on worldwide sales from Alfasigma, which already markets treatments for liver diseases across more than 100 countries.
(Reporting by Raechel Thankam Job in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala and Janane Venkatraman)
GSK will receive up to $690 million from Alfasigma for the worldwide rights to its liver disease drug, linerixibat.
Linerixibat is an experimental treatment for cholestatic pruritus, a severe itching problem in patients with primary biliary cholangitis (PBC).
GSK will get $300 million upfront, $100 million upon expected US approval, $20 million after European and UK approvals, up to $270 million in sales milestones, and tiered royalties.
Alfasigma is an Italian pharmaceutical company with a global footprint, marketing liver disease treatments in over 100 countries.
Additional milestone payments depend on drug approval in the US by March 24 and after approval from European and UK regulators.
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