Generic Firms Can Export Bayer Drugs for R&D in India Ruling
- Ruling may speed the development of generic drugs abroad
- Bayer’s blockbusters Xarelto and Nexavar covered by the ruling
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An Indian court granted a pair of drugmakers the right to export the main ingredients of two of Bayer AG’s top-selling drugs to develop generics in other countries, a decision that has the potential to speed up copycat versions of some of the industry’s most profitable products.
The two Indian companies, Natco Pharma Ltd. and Alembic Pharmaceuticals Ltd., can respectively export sorafenib, the active ingredient in Bayer’s cancer drug Nexavar, and rivaroxaban, used to make its blockbuster blood thinner Xarelto, for research purposes, the Delhi High Court said in a ruling Wednesday. Together, Nexavar and Xarelto garnered about $4.2 billion in revenue last year for Bayer.