Staff in pharmaceutical jobs at Genzyme may see the company agree to a contingent value right (CVR)-based takeover by Sanofi-aventis.
The Wall Street Journal reports that the company is exploring new options in order to break the deadlock over Sanofi-aventis' proposed purchase, to which it has been refusing to agree for several months.
Henri Termeer, chairman and chief executive officer of Genzyme, has stated in the past that he believes the price Sanofi-aventis is offering is an "inadequate" sum that does not reflect Genzyme's value.
However, the CVR structure is now being discussed as a possible means of overcoming this hurdle, as it would provide shareholders with additional benefits once the acquired company hits future commercial or clinical benchmarks.
In this case, unnamed sources state that the CVR would primarily be linked to sales of Campath, a Genzyme leukaemia drug that is currently being tested in a new specification for multiple sclerosis.