Mankind Pharma to invest EUR 48 million for 70% of CAR-T developer ACTx

Mankind Pharma said on 15 October 2026 that it has entered into a definitive agreement, through its subsidiary Mankind Pharma (Netherlands) B.V., to acquire a majority stake in Armed Cell Therapeutics B.V. (ACTx), a Belgium-incorporated biotechnology company developing CAR-T cell therapies for cancer. According to the company’s release, Mankind will invest EUR 48 million for a 70 per cent stake.

Mankind’s board approved the transaction at a meeting on 15 October, according to the company’s disclosure to the National Stock Exchange of India and BSE. The filing says Mankind Pharma (Netherlands) B.V., a wholly owned subsidiary incorporated in the Netherlands on 13 August 2026, will acquire the 70 per cent stake through an investment of EUR 48 million, to be made in instalments, and that the consideration is cash. The board also approved an additional investment of up to EUR 45 million in the subsidiary, in one or more tranches, raising its aggregate investment limit to EUR 50 million including EUR 5 million approved earlier; the filing says this money will be used for the ACTx investment.

On governmental or regulatory approvals, the filing says only that they are “as may be required in compliance with laws of the host country”, and it gives the time period for completion as “as per definitive agreement”. Neither the filing nor the release gives the instalment schedule, says who will hold the remaining 30 per cent, says whether the EUR 48 million is new capital for ACTx or payment to existing shareholders, or gives a completion date.

What ACTx brings

Mankind describes ACTx as a developer of next-generation armed CAR-T therapies for cancer, with lead programmes in non-Hodgkin lymphoma and small cell lung cancer. The release says ACTx will pursue other approaches to CAR-T cell therapy, including in vivo CAR-T cell generation. It does not state the clinical stage of any programme, give trial data or refer to any regulatory approval in any country.

ACTx is headquartered in Belgium with operations in the Netherlands, research and pre-clinical operations in Pittsburgh in the United States, and early development activities in Europe, Asia and the United States, the release says. Its founders include Paul Stoffels, who chairs the board and is a former chief executive of Galapagos and former chief scientific officer of Johnson & Johnson; John Mellors, its chief scientific officer; and Peter Verhaeghe, a corporate finance and life sciences lawyer who chaired argenx from 2008 to 2026.

Innovation will be one of the defining growth engines for Mankind over the coming decades.

Arjun Juneja, Chief Operating Officer, Mankind Pharma

Juneja described the investment as the first step in building a global pipeline of new therapies, and said Mankind’s long-term ambition is to make such therapies more accessible to patients in India and around the world. Stoffels said ACTx has “the assets, the team and now the backing of Mankind” to make CAR-T therapies more powerful and durable, and that he will chair its board.

A new direction for Mankind

Mankind describes itself as one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in India, with 32 manufacturing facilities in India and a field force of more than 18,500 people. The company said the ACTx agreement marks its strategic entry into next-generation CAR-T therapies. Medical Dialogues and Indian Pharma Post both reported the deal on 16 October.

Our reading

• The Healthcare Daily’s reading: Mankind is buying control of a company and its scientific team rather than licensing a single molecule. That gives it a foothold in cell therapy, but because the release gives no clinical stage for ACTx’s programmes, investors have no basis yet for estimating when, or whether, the deal produces revenue.
• The structure leaves 30 per cent with holders that neither the release nor the filing names. Who they are will shape future funding rounds, and whether Mankind’s money funds research or buys out existing investors has not been disclosed. The filing says the EUR 48 million will be paid in instalments but does not say when, or whether payments depend on milestones.
• For Indian hospitals and payers, the stated aim of wider access in India would depend on approval from the CDSCO and on manufacturing or supply arrangements. Mankind has announced no plan or timetable for any of these, so the access ambition remains a statement of intent.