Europe’s first “blank cheque” company focused on acquiring companies that make medicines for the biotech and pharmaceutical industry launched on May 9, with plans to raise 150 million euros.

Gaithersburg, Maryland-based Emergent BioSolutions inked another manufacturing agreement with AstraZeneca to support the development of a vaccine against Covid-19.

Emergent BioSolutions entered a five-year manufacturing services deal with Janssen Pharmaceutical to manufacture Johnson & Johnson’s Ad26.COV2-S COVID-19 vaccine.

CDMO Emergent BioSolutions signed a public-private partnership for the U.S. government’s initiative to accelerate production of a vaccine against COVID-19.

Cobra Biologics, a manufacturer of a possible COVID-19 vaccine being developed by British scientists, may know by the end of May if the firm can make a million doses a month with a view to building stocks for commercial supply when the vaccine is approved.

Jaydev Thakkar was named chief operating officer and Milan Shah was appointed chief technology officer of Biofourmis

Mallinckrodt plc agreed to sell the global biopharmaceutical company’s wholly owned subsidiary BioVectra Inc. to an affiliate of private equity investment firm H.I.G. Capital for $250 million.

Shares of Cambrex Corp. were up more than 46 percent in trading after the company announced an agreement to be acquired by an affiliate of the Permira funds for $60 per share, totaling $2.4 billion.

Opiant Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced an agreement with Sanofi to manufacture Opiant’s investigational agent OPNTOO4 (drinabant) for the treatment of Acute Cannabinoid Overdose.

Celltrion Inc. signed an ‘Incubation’ agreement with Emory University in Atlanta to support the research and development of new drug candidates for atherosclerosis.