Swedish biotech Camurus, known for developing long-acting treatments for chronic conditions, is reportedly in talks to buy US-based Braeburn Pharmaceuticals Inc. The deal, if finalised, would cement Camurus’s foothold in the United States, the world’s largest market for medications tackling the opioid crisis, a scourge that has claimed over a million lives since 2000.
The two companies are no strangers. Since 2014, Camurus and Braeburn have collaborated on Brixadi, a long-acting buprenorphine injection known as Buvidal outside the US. That year, Camurus granted Braeburn exclusive US commercialisation rights in a deal worth $20 million upfront, with potential milestones reaching over $150 million.
Brixadi, approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in May 2023 and launched that September, has since taken the US by storm, capturing a quarter of the market for long-acting buprenorphine within a year and generating $19 million in royalties for Camurus in 2024 alone. Braeburn’s robust distribution network, spanning Medicaid, Medicare, federal programmes and commercial payers, has fueled this rapid uptake.
The US opioid crisis, worsened by fentanyl and synthetic opioids during the COVID-19 pandemic, has evolved into both a public health and a foreign policy issue, with supply chains tied to China and Mexico under scrutiny. With federal initiatives expanding access to addiction treatments, analysts estimate the US market for Brixadi at over $1 billion, driven by growing demand from prescribers, patients and insurers. For Camurus, acquiring Braeburn would mean direct control over Brixadi’s US commercialisation, unlocking a lucrative growth opportunity.
Earlier this year, Camurus signed a deal with US giant Eli Lilly, granting exclusive global rights to develop long-acting incretin products for cardiometabolic health using Camurus’s proprietary FluidCrystal technology. The agreement, covering up to four Lilly compounds, signals Camurus’s intent to play in the big leagues.
The potential acquisition fits a broader pattern of European pharmaceutical giants snapping up American counterparts. Just last week, Switzerland’s Novartis announced a $1.4 billion deal for New York–based Tourmaline Bio to bolster its immunology portfolio. In July, France’s Sanofi made waves with a $9.5 billion purchase of Boston’s Blueprint Medicines, securing a foothold in rare-immunology treatments.
For Camurus, a relatively smaller player, acquiring Braeburn would be a transformative leap, thrusting it deeper into the US market for long-acting opioid treatments.
