Cipla entered into a strategic collaboration with Kemwell Biopharma and Manipal Education & Medical Group to incorporate a joint venture in the U.S. to develop and commercialize cell therapy products in the U.S., Japan, and EU.

Cipla will secure a 35.2% stake in the joint venture company. Cipla will leverage its product development and commercialization with Kemwell’s expertise in biologics and Manipal’s expertise in healthcare delivery, to support development, manufacturing, licensing, import and export of cell therapy products to cater to patients globally.

This marks the second joint venture between Cipla and Kemwell Biopharma, following the incorporation of Aspergen Inc., USA in 2022 for the development, manufacturing, and commercialization of biosimilars for global markets. Aspergen Inc. is actively developing two projects, with several others under evaluation.

Umang Vohra, Managing Director & Global CEO, Cipla, said, “This joint venture reinforces our concerted efforts to move up the innovation curve and pioneer transformative treatments in the areas of stem cell and CAR T-cell therapies, enabled by advances in biotech, mRNA and cell-engineering research, that can make a difference to patient lives globally. As we steer Cipla into the future and lead with purpose, our partnership with Kemwell and Manipal Group will be integral in realizing these advancements.”

Ranjan Pai, chairman, Manipal Education & Medical Group, said, “We are very happy to partner with Cipla and Kemwell in bringing the next generation of biological therapies to address unmet medical needs globally. Physicians will have accessible, safe, and clinically effective Cell therapies in their hand to fight against many serious indications. We believe that Cell therapy products will be a game-changer in offering an advanced therapeutic treatment for millions of patients suffering with painful diseases.”

Anurag Bagaria, Chairman and CEO, Kemwell said, “We believe that Cell therapies will become a major branch of medical treatment and will become a standard of care for challenging diseases. Kemwell has built a world-class cGMP facility in Bangalore and made India an emerging hub for cell therapy development and manufacturing. The synergistic combinations of Cipla, Manipal and Kemwell will accelerate the development of novel cell-based products for patients and transform the new JV into a global player in cell therapeutics.”