Galapagos abandons cell therapy, putting 365 jobs at risk

Galapagos' difficult year has continued with a decision to wind down its cell therapy business as it looks for deals that will deliver a "strong and sustainable future."

The Belgian biotech's rollercoaster 2025 started with a plan to split in two, separating its drug development and cell therapy businesses, although that was abandoned just a few months later on the grounds that "regulatory and market conditions" had made it think again.

At the same time, the retirement of long-serving chief executive Paul Stoffels, who had been due to step down as CEO after the separation was completed, was brought forward with former Neumora CEO Henry Gosebruch stepping into the role.

Now, the company has said that winding down the cell therapy unit altogether is the best course of action as it continues to seek "transformational business development transactions with its available cash resources."

Gosebruch said that Galapagos had tried to find a buyer or investor in the cell therapy unit with the expertise and resources to take the business forward, but had received only a "limited number" of non-binding offers.

"Ultimately, no viable proposals were received with terms or financing that would reasonably support the business' future," he continued, but added that any proposals to acquire the unit – whole or in part – would be considered while the winding-down process plays out.

The decision to wind down the unit has already been approved by Galapagos' board of directors, but will still need to be negotiated by works councils in Belgium and the Netherlands. It employs 365 people at locations in Europe, the US, and China.

Galapagos' cell therapy pipeline is led by CD19-targeting CAR-T candidate GLPG5101, which is in a phase 1/2 trial in patients with relapsed/refractory, indolent non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) and achieved a 97% complete response rate in a cohort of 32 patients at the ICML congress in June.

The drug development side of the company is currently focused on finding a partner for GLPG3667, a TYK2-targeting small molecule in mid-stage development for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and dermatomyositis (DM), as it seeks out business development opportunities.

The company ended the first half of this year with €3.1 billion ($3.6 billion) in cash reserves, and is due to report its third-quarter results on 6th November. It expects operating costs of up to €125 million for the cell therapy division through 2026, plus another €150 to €200 million in one-time restructuring costs next year.

Galapagos' decision is the second retreat from cell therapy of late, coming after Novo Nordisk said it was exiting the category earlier this month with around 250 job losses, ending a long-running effort to develop a candidate for type 1 diabetes.

Photo by Crawford Jolly on Unsplash