Galapagos to buy Inpharmatica in £8.4m deal

Inpharmatica, which has a base in the Cambridge Science Park is to be bought by Dutch firm Galapagos in an all-share deal, valuing it at £8.4m.Galapagos plans to bolt the business onto its service division BioFocus, a Cambridge company it acquired last year. It added that it would also employ the acquired capability in its own drug discovery programs in bone and joint diseases.

The deal gives Galapagos access to Inpharmatica's £4m cash pile a fact reflected in the purchase price. The dutch company could pay a further £4.5m if commercial milestones are met.

Inpharmatica's Cambridge operation came about following its acquisition of Arqule's operations in the city in 2004.