V-Wave’s Ventura Interatrial Shunt, designed for patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction, will join Johnson & Johnson MedTech’s portfolio under the new agreement.
Summary: Johnson & Johnson has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire V-Wave Ltd, a privately held company specializing in treatments for heart failure, for an upfront payment of $600 million and potential additional payments up to $1.1 billion. V-Wave’s flagship product, the Ventura Interatrial Shunt, is a minimally invasive implant designed to reduce elevated left atrial pressure in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). This acquisition aims to enhance Johnson & Johnson MedTech’s portfolio in addressing cardiovascular diseases and provides a new treatment option for approximately 800,000 HFrEF patients in the United States annually.
Key Takeaways:
- Acquisition to Address Heart Failure: Johnson & Johnson’s planned acquisition of V-Wave Ltd brings the Ventura Interatrial Shunt into its MedTech portfolio.
- Investment Reflects Unmet Medical Need: The deal involves an upfront payment of $600 million with potential additional milestones totaling approximately $1.1 billion, highlighting the unmet need in effective heart failure treatments and the confidence in V-Wave’s technology to fill this gap.
- Regulatory Advancements and Future Impact: V-Wave’s Ventura Interatrial Shunt has received FDA Breakthrough Device Designation and CE mark approval.
Johnson & Johnson announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire V-Wave Ltd, a privately held company focused on developing treatment options for patients with heart failure.
Under the terms of the agreement, Johnson & Johnson will acquire V-Wave for an upfront payment of $600 million, subject to customary adjustments, with the potential for additional regulatory and commercial milestone payments up to approximately $1.1 billion. V-Wave will join Johnson & Johnson as part of Johnson & Johnson MedTech.
Heart failure is a global health burden associated with impaired quality of life, frequent hospitalizations, increasing healthcare costs, and high rates of premature death. V-Wave’s cardiovascular implant technology specifically targets heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). In HFrEF, a patient’s heart muscle has insufficient ability to pump blood containing oxygen and nutrients to the body.
V-Wave’s Ventura Interatrial Shunt is a novel implantable device designed to decrease elevated left atrial pressure seen in congestive heart failure by creating a shunt between the left and right atrium, thereby reducing cardiovascular events and heart failure hospitalizations.
More specifically, the device:
- Is placed in the heart through a minimally invasive catheter-based procedure and has the potential to fill a treatment gap between guideline-directed medical therapies as a first-line therapy and highly invasive cardiac replacement therapies, including left ventricular assist devices and heart transplantation.
- Received FDA Breakthrough Device Designation in 2019 and CE mark in 2020 and has the potential to be the first device of its kind to market, according to Johnson & Johnson.
- Addresses an unmet need for approximately 800,000 patients who experience HFrEF in the US every year.
“We recognize the importance of identifying more diverse and effective treatments for heart failure, and our recent track record demonstrates our focus on accelerating our impact on the most urgent and pressing unmet needs,” says Tim Schmid, executive vice president and worldwide chairman of Johnson & Johnson MedTech, in a release. “We know V-Wave well, with our relationship dating back to our original investment in the company in 2016, and we have a deep understanding of the technology and science, as well as the company’s commitment to patients. We look forward to working with the V-Wave team at this pivotal stage of its evolution to bring the Ventura Interatrial Shunt technology to patients.”
Neal Eigler, chief executive officer of V-Wave, adds in a release. “We are confident that Johnson & Johnson MedTech is well-positioned to ensure V-Wave’s breakthrough ideas and technology reach patients in need as quickly and effectively as possible. I couldn’t be prouder of the V-Wave team and the commitment it has taken to achieve this milestone. We look forward to continuing to build a world where cardiovascular disease is prevented, treated, and cured.”
Photo caption: V-Wave’s Ventura Interatrial Shunt
Photo credit: Johnson & Johnson
