Merck KGaA to acquire UK gene-silencing firm Silence Therapeutics for $1.3 billion

Merck KGaA has agreed to acquire the U.K. biotech Silence Therapeutics in a cash transaction valued at about $1.3 billion, offering $20 per Nasdaq-listed unit, a premium of roughly 130% over the last closing price. The deal, announced by Merck’s chief executive Kai Beckmann, will bring the gene-silencing platform and the experimental drug divesiran, intended for the rare blood disorder polycythemia vera, into Merck’s specialty-medicine pipeline.

Silence disclosed the proposal in a filing with the U.S. SEC and said the merger still needs approval from its shareholders, the High Court of Justice of England and Wales, and relevant regulators, with closing expected in early 2027. Iain Ross, Silence’s chairman and interim CEO, highlighted Merck’s size and commercial expertise as key to advancing the drug’s late-stage studies. This acquisition follows Merck’s June agreement to buy life-sciences tools supplier Bio-Techne for an enterprise value of about $11.3 billion, marking the first major deal under Beckmann’s leadership. Merck KGaA operates independently of U.S. Merck & Co.