We regularly work within the field of IP finance to support creditors, borrowers, and other monetizing IP income and asset values. For example, we work with sellers and buyers of royalty streams on the sale and financing of royalty interests, and our attorneys are adept at navigating the increasingly complex structure and terms in royalty sale transactions. We represent a range of sellers of royalty interests, including academic medical centers, universities and biotechnology companies. Our experience includes structuring complex synthetic royalty arrangements, sales of partial royalty streams and sales of full royalty interests.
We also have deep expertise in advising clients on corporate structures created to acquire, hold, license and enforce both intellectual property and related tangible assets in order to maximize their value for our clients in their lending, borrowing, securitization and monetizing activities. Our team has a deep bench of experience expertise and regularly designs and implements monetization strategizes that will optimize the use and value of clients’ assets.
Representative matters include:
- Advised Dunkin’ Brands Group, Inc. (“Dunkin’ Brands”) on the refinancing of its senior secured credit facility with a new $2.6 billion securitized debt facility. Dunkin’ Brands is the parent company of Dunkin’ Donuts and Baskin-Robbins.
- Represented Canada Pension Plan Investment Board in its purchase of a royalty interest on sales of products based on Dana Farber’s Programmed Death Ligand-1 (PD-L1) intellectual property. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board has paid $100 million upfront to acquire a portion of Dana-Farber’s royalty interests and has committed to pay up to $68 million in additional payments, subject to certain conditions
- Represented LA BioMed and UCLA in a royalty monetization involving the sale of a royalty stream payable to LA BioMed under a license to Allergan for certain patents covering the submental fat product “Kybella.” Ropes & Gray worked closely with LA BioMed and UCLA , as well as their structuring agent, Morgan Stanley, throughout a two-round bid process. The transaction reached a successful conclusion with Canada Pension Plan Investment Board as the winning bidder.
- Represented Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in a $175 million royalty-based debt offering, in which the debt will be repaid through a synthetic royalty on sales of LINZESS in the United States.
- Represented HealthCare Royalty Partners in an investment in Nuron Biotech, Inc., a specialty biologics and vaccines company, including an $80 million financing, a $30 million equity investment and a $50 million synthetic royalty loan based on future sales of Meningitec, a vaccine, and the company’s other products.