Sanofi snaps up Dynavax in US $2.2B deal
The French pharmaceutical company has acquired Dynavax Technologies (CA, USA) to broaden its late-stage vaccine pipeline.
Sanofi (Paris, France) has rounded up 2025 with a strong move in the vaccine space, agreeing on December 24 to acquire US-based Dynavax Technologies for US $2.2 billion. The deal brings Sanofi a marketed adult hepatitis B vaccine and a promising shingles candidate, reinforcing the push to expand beyond its traditional flu-heavy portfolio.
Adult vaccination remains a major public health gap, with rates consistently lagging behind childhood immunizations. Each year, millions of adults are infected with hepatitis B, a virus that can lead to severe liver disease, while shingles affects roughly one in three people during their lifetime. Against these statistics, Sanofi has been seeking assets that combine near-term revenues with longer-term growth potential.
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At the heart of the acquisition is HEPLISAV-B, Dynavax’s adult hepatitis B vaccine, already marketed in the US and differentiated by a two-dose, 1-month schedule that delivers faster protection than older regimens due to higher seroprotection and vaccine completion rates. Sanofi also gains Z-1018, a shingles vaccine candidate in Phase I/II development, which could one day compete in a market currently dominated by GSK’s (London, UK) Shingrix.
For Sanofi, the deal signals continued confidence in vaccines, and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2026. By pairing Dynavax’s focused innovations with its own global scale, the company is positioning itself to play a larger role in protecting adults against preventable infectious diseases in the years ahead.
