Situation Assessment

• Calliditas Therapeutics (Nasdaq: CALT) is a Swedish company focused on identifying,  developing and commercializing novel treatments in orphan indications
• Calliditas’s lead product, Nefecon® (Tarpeyo® in the US), is a specialty drug approved in Europe and the US for the treatment of the chronic autoimmune kidney disease Immunoglobulin A Nephropathy (IgAN) in Japan
• IgAN (Berger’s disease), has been a designated intractable disease in Japan since 2014
• Calliditas was interested in securing a Japanese partner for Nefecon® and engaged Locust Walk in Dec 2021 to support the partnering activities in Japan to obtain the best deal possible
• In December 2022, Calliditas and Locust Walk successfully consummated a license agreement  between Calliditas and Viatris for the registration and commercialization of Nefecon® in Japan

Key Activities

• Prepared high-impact marketing materials to emphasize the high unmet medical need in Japan and differentiation of Nefecon® from competitors
• Conducted a highly-specific identification campaign to identify 34 top-tier companies with strategic focus in nephrology, rare disease or urology and initiated direct outreach
• Led numerous companies through a confidential due diligence process resulting in multiple term sheet discussions
• Provided strategic advice on Japan orphan disease pricing, regulatory framework and deal structure, creating deal tension that led to a favorable valuation for Calliditas
• Worked in collaboration with legal and business development teams to drive transaction to a successful close

Successful Outcome

• Provided Calliditas a top-tier partner to ensure the development and commercialization of Nefecon® in a key marketplace and further build asset value and provided Viatris a key asset to further build its Japanese specialty business
• Significant upfront payment secured non-dilutive cash for Calliditas during a challenging capital market dynamic