Novo Nordisk has scored a major legal victory in its high-stakes $830 million fraud case, securing a worldwide asset freeze against KBP Biosciences as it prepares for arbitration over the allegedly deceptive sale of the hypertension drug ocedurenone.
Judge Philip Jeyaretnam of the Singapore International Commercial Court issued the injunction Friday, citing “a good arguable case” that KBP knowingly misled Novo about the drug’s safety and efficacy in the lead-up to the $1.3 billion deal.
Allegations of Concealed Data and Misrepresentation
In his ruling, Judge Jeyaretnam found that KBP had promised to provide “true, complete, and accurate” information under the asset purchase agreement. However, Novo alleges KBP withheld interim analyses of Phase 2 clinical trials that exposed ocedurenone’s inefficacy, along with details about testing irregularities at a key trial site that reported anomalous positive results.
“The evidence here points to a seller who knowingly misrepresented the value of its assets while anticipating a claim from the buyer,” the judge wrote.
Adding to the suspicion, Novo flagged nearly $340 million in transactions from KBP to its holding company around the time of the deal, raising concerns that the Chinese pharmaceutical firm was moving assets beyond Novo’s reach.
