Royalty Pharma

The company’s board page says founder Pablo Legorreta was previously an investment banker at Lazard Frères in Paris and New York, founded Royalty Pharma in 1996 and has since served as its founder, chief executive and chairman.⁠[1]

The 2020 prospectus says the predecessor, referred to as “Old RPI,” was set up as a finite-life serial fund, and that royalties held in its first decade included Neulasta, Neupogen, Rituxan, Lyrica, HIV drugs including Truvada, and the TNF inhibitors Humira, Remicade and Cimzia.⁠[2]

According to the prospectus, the business became evergreen in 2004 and created the first securitization debt facility backed by pharmaceutical royalties; in 2007 that securitization was converted into a syndicated term loan.⁠[2]

The prospectus says that from 2012 the company began acquiring royalties on products still in development, having previously focused on approved drugs.⁠[2]

Pharmaceutical Manufacturing reported that Royalty Pharma dropped its roughly $6.7 billion takeover bid for Irish drugmaker Elan after a four-month battle and abandoned a judicial review it had sought; shareholder votes and share-buyback plans had complicated the process.⁠[3]

The Pharma Letter reported that Royalty Pharma paid $3.3 billion in cash to Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Therapeutics for its royalty rights on Vertex’s Kalydeco and, if approved, on VX-809 and VX-661, describing it as the largest financial return ever achieved by a disease charity.⁠[4]

The cystic fibrosis royalty went on to become one of the company’s largest income streams: the 10-K for 2025 shows Vertex’s cystic fibrosis franchise contributed $917 million of portfolio receipts that year, the most of any product.⁠[5]

Royalty Pharma agreed to buy Perrigo's royalty on multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri for $2.2 billion in cash at closing plus up to $650 million in milestones ($250 million tied to 2018 and $400 million to 2020 royalty thresholds); Perrigo had obtained the rights through its 2013 acquisition of Elan, and the royalties are paid by Biogen.⁠[6]

The prospectus lists a 2018 transaction in which the company paid $175.0 million for a royalty on Trodelvy and $75.0 million for shares of Immunomedics.⁠[2]

The 2025 Form 10-K states that the listed entity, Royalty Pharma plc, was incorporated in England and Wales on February 6, 2020, with principal offices at 110 East 59th Street, New York.⁠[5]

Renaissance Capital reported that Royalty Pharma priced its offering at $28 a share, the top of its $25–28 range, selling 77.7 million shares to raise $2.2 billion in the year’s largest IPO, for a fully diluted market value of about $16.7 billion; lead underwriters included J.P. Morgan, Morgan StanleyMorgan StanleyMorgan Stanley is an American global financial services firm that grew from an investment banking partnership into a publicly traded financial group spanning investment banking, securities trading, wealth management, and investment management.Open the full entry, BofA and Goldman SachsGoldman SachsGoldman Sachs is an American financial services group headquartered in New York whose businesses include investment banking, securities trading, asset management, and wealth management. It traces its origins to the commercial paper business Marcus Goldman founded in 1869; it listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1999 under the ticker GS and became a bank holding company in 2008. David Solomon serves as chairman and chief executive officer.Open the full entry.⁠[7]

On its first day of trading the stock opened at $44 and closed 58.9% above the offer price. STAT described it as the largest biopharma IPO apart from the animal-health company Zoetis.⁠[8][9]

The prospectus lists several transactions in the IPO year: $255.0 million to Agios for the IDHIFA royalty in June 2020, $650.0 million to PTC Therapeutics for an Evrysdi royalty in July, and a commitment of up to $450 million to Biohaven in August tied to zavegepant and Nurtec ODT.⁠[2]

On September 2, 2020 the company issued $6.0 billion of senior unsecured notes to refinance its term loan. On October 15, selling shareholders sold 17,343,037 Class A shares at $42 each, about $728.4 million, with no proceeds to the company; the prospectus also disclosed cumulative capital deployment of about $19 billion from 1996 to August 31, 2020.⁠[2]

To support MorphoSys' $1.7 billion acquisition of Constellation Pharmaceuticals, Royalty Pharma paid $1.425 billion upfront for MorphoSys' future mid-single-digit royalties on Janssen's Tremfya (expiring around 2031–2032), 3% of future net sales of myelofibrosis candidate pelabresib, and 80% of royalties and 100% of milestones on otilimab.⁠[10]

The package also included a $100 million purchase of MorphoSys shares, up to $350 million in Development Funding Bonds and up to $150 million in milestone payments.⁠[10]

Royalty Pharma announced it would acquire all equity in Theravance Respiratory Company, which holds the royalty on GSK's Trelegy, from Theravance Biopharma and Innoviva for $1.31 billion upfront plus up to $300 million in sales milestones; the royalty tiers upward from 6.5% to 10% of worldwide annual sales.⁠[11]

Separately, it paid Theravance $25 million upfront plus a potential $15 million regulatory milestone for a low- to mid-single-digit royalty on worldwide sales of ampreloxetine.⁠[11]

Royalty Pharma later stated that its January 2023 funding agreement with Ionis totaled $500 million, with $150 million ascribed to royalties on cardiovascular candidate pelacarsen and $350 million to Spinraza royalties (25% of Ionis' Spinraza royalties through 2027, rising to 45% in 2028).⁠[12]

After the listing Royalty Pharma remained externally managed by RP Management, LLC. The 2024 Form 10-K disclosed that at December 31, 2024 the manager had 99 employees while Royalty Pharma itself had no employees other than its executive officers, and that the market value of shares held by non-affiliates was about $13.1 billion at June 30, 2024.⁠[13]

A later company release explains that the manager had been solely owned by Legorreta until early 2024, when he granted equity in it to 35 team members, vesting over ten years.⁠[14]

Cytokinetics and Royalty Pharma announced an expanded funding collaboration of up to $575 million, with $250 million at closing; the aficamten royalty was restructured to 4.5% of annual net sales up to $5.0 billion and 1% above.⁠[15]

It also included up to $225 million in commercial launch funding repaid over 10 years at 1.9x, a $50 million equity purchase, and development funding for omecamtiv mecarbil and CK-586 trials.⁠[15]

The 2025 Form 10-K records that in June 2025 the company funded the first $250 million tranche of up to $1.25 billion in royalty funding to Revolution Medicines for its candidate daraxonrasib, alongside a term loan of up to $750 million, and that in November it bought the royalty on Alnylam’s Amvuttra from Blackstone for $310 million.⁠[5]

The same filing says the company announced $4.7 billion of transactions in 2025 and deployed $2.6 billion of cash; its leading products by portfolio receipts were Vertex’s cystic fibrosis franchise ($917 million), GSK’s Trelegy ($332 million), Roche’s Evrysdi ($202 million) and J&J’s Tremfya ($178 million).⁠[5]

Royalty Pharma announced it would acquire its external manager, RP Management, for total consideration of about $1.1 billion: roughly 24.5 million shares (about 4%, vesting over five to nine years), about $100 million in cash and the assumption of $380 million of the manager’s debt. It projected savings of more than $100 million in 2026 and over $1.6 billion across ten years, and announced a $3 billion share repurchase program.⁠[16]

Legorreta called it a “highly compelling next step in the evolution of our business.”⁠[16]

A Form 8-K dated May 12, 2025 shows the internalization proposal received 440,522,948 votes for and 74,301 against at the annual general and special meetings.⁠[17]

On May 16 the company announced it had completed the acquisition and that all of the manager’s employees had become Royalty Pharma employees. The release noted that the company had previously paid the manager 6.5% of portfolio receipts plus 0.25% of security investments.⁠[14]

Royalty Pharma acquired from an undisclosed third party, for up to $315 million, a low-single-digit pre-existing royalty on worldwide net sales of Nuvalent's lung-cancer candidates neladalkib and zidesamtinib, expected to run to roughly 2041–2042.⁠[18]

According to Goodwin Procter, which advised on the deal, Royalty Pharma paid $240 million upfront plus up to $60 million in milestones for PTC Therapeutics’ remaining Evrysdi royalty, giving it the whole of the tiered 8–16% royalty.⁠[19]

The first annual report after internalization shows Royalty Pharma had 100 employees at December 31, 2025, and that 428,418,612 Class A and 148,438,141 Class B shares were outstanding on February 6, 2026.⁠[5]

On January 9, 2026, Royalty Pharma raised its quarterly dividend to $0.235 per Class A share, up 6.8% from the prior quarter.⁠[20]

On January 11 it agreed to provide Teva up to $500 million for IL-15-blocking antibody TEV-'408: $75 million in R&D co-funding for a Phase 2b vitiligo study and an option to provide an additional $425 million for Phase 3; if approved, Teva will pay a milestone and a royalty on worldwide net sales.⁠[21]

Royalty Pharma reported 2025 Portfolio Receipts of $3,254 million, up 16%, and Royalty Receipts of $3,127 million, up 13%; it repurchased about 37 million Class A shares for $1.2 billion during the year and guided 2026 Portfolio Receipts of $3,275–$3,425 million.⁠[22]

Royalty Pharma provided Zymeworks a $250 million non-recourse royalty-backed note repaid from 30% of worldwide tiered royalties on HER2 bispecific Ziihera, ending once cumulative payments reach 1.65x by December 31, 2033 or 1.925x thereafter; Zymeworks retains 70% of royalties and all milestones in the interim. Ziihera's partners are Jazz Pharmaceuticals and BeOne Medicines (formerly BeiGene).⁠[23]

On March 17, 2026, the company hired Greg Butz, former Global Co-Head of Healthcare Investment Banking at Bank of America, as Executive Vice President, Partnering & Investments (effective June 2026), named Chris Hite Chairman, Partnering & Investments, and added Ken Sun as Head of Asia.⁠[24]

On March 23 it named Lucas Glass, previously Senior Vice President of Technology at IQVIA, Head of Artificial Intelligence effective April 2026; Legorreta said the appointment "marks a significant step in our commitment to implementing cutting‑edge technology."⁠[25]

Royalty Pharma entered an R&D co-funding agreement with Johnson & Johnson "for a total of $500 million in 2026 and 2027" to support JNJ-4804, an investigational co-antibody therapy blocking the IL-23 and TNF pathways for autoimmune diseases.⁠[26]

Royalty Pharma launched an annual $1 million prize for scientists whose basic insights led to impactful medicines, "particularly contributions not yet recognized by the field's most prominent awards"; the selection committee is chaired by Nobel chemistry laureate Sir Gregory Winter, with the first laureate to be recognized in spring 2027.⁠[27]

The company reported Q1 2026 Portfolio Receipts of $925 million, up 10%, and Royalty Receipts of $887 million, up 13%, raising full-year Portfolio Receipts guidance to $3,325–$3,450 million; it recorded a $69 million non-cash impairment on Tazverik after its withdrawal from Ipsen's markets.⁠[28]

On August 3 the company named Greg Raskin, previously SVP of Technology Development at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, as SVP and Head of Academic Initiatives, overseeing outreach to academic and non-profit institutions and the Translational Prize.⁠[29]

On August 12 it agreed to pay Zealand Pharma $100 million ($50 million at closing and $50 million at the first anniversary) for Zealand's economics in rusfertide, including a 1% royalty on worldwide net sales plus milestones; above $1.5 billion in annual sales Royalty Pharma retains 0.75%. Takeda is responsible for global commercialization.⁠[30]

Royalty Pharma reported second-quarter 2026 portfolio receipts of $773 million, up 6%, and royalty receipts of $768 million, up 14%, and raised its full-year portfolio receipts guidance to $3.40–3.50 billion.⁠[31]

The same release said that in July 2026 the company acquired part of Neurimmune’s royalty on AstraZeneca’s candidate cliramitug for up to $425 million, with $125 million upfront, and repaid a $380 million term loan.⁠[31]

Novartis' Phase 3 HORIZON outcomes trial of pelacarsen missed its primary endpoint of reducing cardiovascular events. Royalty Pharma said its deal "was structured in a protective manner" and it "expects to recoup its total investment and earn a modest positive return"; its Spinraza interest reverts to Ionis once payments reach $550 million (1.1x), and it reiterated its 2030 Portfolio Receipts target of $4.7 billion or more.⁠[12]

Royalty Pharma donated $7.5 million to Blood Cancer United's Therapy Acceleration Program, becoming its first and largest corporate donor; the two had launched a five-year, $7.5 million alliance on blood-cancer care disparities in 2022.⁠[32]

Royalty Pharma: Official website: https://www.royaltypharma.com/ (opens in a new window)⁠[1]