Silence Therapeutics to be Acquired by Merck KGaA

By Tamara Parker • Monday, October 19 10:50 • Permanent Link

Silence Therapeutics agreed to be acquired by Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany in an all-cash deal valued at about $1.3 billion in equity and $1.1 billion in enterprise value.

Silence shareholders will receive $20.00 per American depositary share, or $6.6667 per ordinary share. That price is 130% above Silence’s closing ADS price on Oct. 16, 2026 and 82% above the 30-day volume-weighted average price of $10.99.

The transaction was unanimously approved by Silence’s board. Securityholders holding about 14% of the company’s voting power have already agreed to support the deal.

Merck said the acquisition will add Silence’s pipeline, including divesiran, a therapy in phase 2 development for polycythemia vera. Silence said the transaction follows what it described as potentially best-in-class phase 2 data for divesiran.

The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027, subject to shareholder approval, court sanction and regulatory approvals. Following these announcements, the company's shares moved -7.17%, and are now trading at a price of $8.68. Check out the company's full 8-K submission here.

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