Novo Nordisk inks US$1.3B licensing agreement with Sweden’s Nanexa for long-acting injectables

DENMARK: Novo Nordisk has signed a license agreement with Swedish biotech Nanexa to develop longer-lasting injectable medicines as it expands its cardiometabolic drug portfolio.

Under the global exclusive agreement, Novo will pay Nanexa up to €615 million (US$701 million) in upfront and milestone payments.

The deal could reach €1.165 billion (US$1.33 billion) if it reaches sales milestones.

Nanexa will also receive low single-digit royalties on global net sales of products developed through the collaboration.

Nanexa shares, listed on Nasdaq Stockholm, rose 154% at market open on 25 September after the agreement was announced, compared with the previous market close.

Targeting longer dosing intervals

The partnership gives Novo access to Nanexa’s PharmaShell drug delivery platform, which is based on atomic layer deposition (ALD).

The technology applies an ultra thin inorganic coating to individual drug particles, allowing the release of an active pharmaceutical ingredient to be controlled over time.

The coating’s composition and thickness can be adjusted to produce different release profiles.

As the coating gradually dissolves, the drug is released from the particles, potentially allowing medicines to remain active for longer periods.

Novo will have rights to use PharmaShell with peptide medicines in up to five development programmes covering obesity, type 2 diabetes and other cardiometabolic diseases.

Many injectable medicines used in these areas are currently administered weekly.

Novo said the collaboration will explore formulations designed for monthly or quarterly dosing.

Nanexa CEO David Westberg said the agreement provides further external validation of PharmaShell and could support its development across additional therapeutic areas and selected internal programmes. His comments reflect the company’s view of the platform’s potential rather than established clinical outcomes.

Competitive drug delivery landscape

The agreement comes as Novo continues to strengthen its position in cardiometabolic medicines, where longer dosing intervals are a growing focus of research and development.

Rival Eli Lilly has also expanded its presence in obesity and type 2 diabetes treatments, increasing the focus on differentiated formulations and delivery technologies.

For Novo, access to a drug delivery platform could complement its existing peptide development capabilities.

Longer-acting formulations may also affect treatment frequency, manufacturing requirements and how patients use injectable medicines, although the potential benefits will depend on the performance of individual products in development.

The Nanexa deal is the biotech’s second major pharmaceutical partnership announced in the past year.

In December 2025, Nanexa signed a licensing agreement with Moderna valued at up to US$503 million.

The companies did not disclose the five potential compounds covered by the Novo collaboration.

Novo expands external partnerships

Novo has also pursued other external collaborations as it works toward a stated goal of launching more than five medicines capable of generating at least US$1 billion in annual sales by 2030.

Earlier in September, Novo entered a US$1.4 billion partnership with Orbis Medicines to develop oral macrocycle therapeutics.

During the same week, the company announced a collaboration with Anthropic to explore the use of its Claude artificial intelligence technology in research and development.

Together, the agreements reflect Novo’s continued use of external technologies and partnerships to broaden its development pipeline across drug modalities and therapeutic areas.

Sign up HERE to receive our email newsletters with the latest news and insights from Africa and around the world, and follow us on LinkedIn for updates.