Novo (formerly Novo Nordisk) and Copenhagen-based Orbis Medicines announced Thursday September 17, 2026 a multi-target drug discovery and licensing collaboration under which Orbis will apply its proprietary nGen macrocyclic-peptide platform — an integration of generative AI, high-throughput synthesis, and multi-parameter optimization for oral bioavailability — to design next-generation oral macrocycles for high-value cardiometabolic disease targets. Orbis is eligible for up to $1.4 billion in upfront and downstream milestone payments plus tiered royalties on future product sales, and Novo will make a separate strategic equity investment in Orbis. Orbis founding CEO Morten Graugaard disclosed the platform's macrocyclic peptides have achieved up to 18% oral bioavailability in preclinical models — a notable improvement for the macrocycle class that has historically struggled with gut absorption. Orbis was founded in January 2025 with a $93 million Series A led by Novo Holdings and Forbion; the Novo pact is the young biotech's first Big Pharma partnership. Neither company disclosed specific targets or lead candidates. The deal deepens Novo's oral-peptide investment strategy following the January 2026 Wegovy pill launch (now surpassing 5 million U.S. prescriptions) and lands the same week the parent company introduced its shorter 'Novo' operating brand.
Zealand Pharma (NASDAQ: ZLDPY; Copenhagen: ZEAL) CEO Adam Steensberg presented Wednesday September 16, 2026 at 11:30 a.m. EDT at the Morgan Stanley 24th Annual Global Healthcare Conference in New York, introducing the company's Metabolic Frontier 2030 strategic plan targeting five commercial products by 2030. The plan anchors on petrelintide (long-acting subcutaneous amylin analog Phase 3 with Roche under an April 2026 exclusive collaboration and licensing agreement; deal terms up to $5.3 billion including $1.65 billion upfront, plus 50/50 profit share on both monotherapy and combination products including petrelintide plus Roche's enicepatide GLP-1/GIP dual agonist). Phase 2 ZUPREME-1 documented up to 10.7% mean weight loss at 42 weeks versus 1.7% placebo, with no vomiting cases and no GI-related discontinuations at the maximally effective dose. Steensberg indicated the next phase of obesity competition may center on tolerability and patient retention rather than only on weight-loss magnitude — a positioning that differentiates petrelintide from the higher-efficacy but higher-GI-burden retatrutide (28% weight loss) and CagriSema. Zealand is building integrated commercial capabilities for petrelintide while relying on partners for other assets in rare disease and inflammation.
Circle Pharma announced Wednesday September 16, 2026 an oversubscribed $92.5 million Series E financing led by The Column Group with participation from Nextech Invest, RA Capital Management, Euclidean Capital, and Eli Lilly and Company. Founded in 2012, the South San Francisco biotech develops orally bioavailable macrocyclic peptides against cancer-driving intracellular protein-protein interactions historically considered undruggable by conventional small molecules. Lead asset CID-165 is an oral macrocyclic peptide cyclin D1 RxL inhibitor designed to block the interaction between cyclin D1 and its downstream substrates in ER-positive breast cancer. Proceeds advance CID-165 into early clinical development plus expansion of the broader Circle discovery pipeline. Lilly's investor participation adds to a growing Lilly obesity-and-oncology-adjacent equity portfolio that already includes Moonwalk Biosciences (adipose RNAi, $70M Series B September 8), Superluminal Medicines (MC4R agonist, $60M Series B September 3), and Verve Therapeutics (base editing, acquired July 2025). The macrocyclic peptide category has attracted substantial VC and pharma investment throughout 2026, with Syneron Bio, Parabilis Medicines (formerly FogPharma), Bicycle Therapeutics, Unnatural Products, and Circle Pharma all closing major funding rounds or strategic collaborations.