Arbutus/Genevant settle Moderna LNP patent litigation for $2.25B; $950M upfront due July 2026

Arbutus Biopharma Corp

Moderna to pay $950M upfront by July 8, 2026, plus $1.3B contingent on affirming rejection of Section 1498 defense.
Arbutus receives 20% of proceeds after litigation costs under its Genevant license; total potential $2.25B.
Arbutus evaluating a return of capital to shareholders in Q3 2026, tied to the upfront payment.
Settlement includes judgment of infringement and no invalidity on four patents; global license for SM-102 LNP mRNA vaccines.

Key facts

Extracted from this filing and checked against the source text.

Material Agreements SEC 8-K Item 1.01/1.02 confidence 0.9

Arbutus Biopharma Corp entered into Settlement Agreement with Moderna, Inc. and ModernaTx, Inc. (together, Moderna) valued at $950.0 million noncontingent lump sum payment (effective 2026-03-03).

Action: entry
Agreement: settlement
Counterparty: Moderna, Inc. and ModernaTx, Inc. (together, Moderna)
Value: $950.0 million noncontingent lump sum payment
Effective: 2026-03-03

Exact text from the filing

On March 3, 2026 (the “Effective Date”), Arbutus Biopharma Corporation (“Arbutus” or the “Company”), Genevant Sciences GmbH (“Genevant” and together with Arbutus, “Arbutus/Genevant”), and, solely for certain purposes, Genevant Sciences Ltd., and Moderna, Inc. and ModernaTx, Inc. (together, “Moderna”) entered into a settlement agreement (the “Settlement Agreement”) to resolve all patent infringement litigation between Arbutus/Genevant and Moderna pending in the U.S. and internationally relating to Moderna’s unauthorized use of Arbutus/Genevant’s lipid nanoparticle (“LNP”) delivery technology in its vaccines, including Spikevax® (the “LNP Litigation”).

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Source: SEC EDGAR

accession 0001171843-26-001299

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