Shares of Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) surged 24% in after-hours trading on Tuesday, while Roivant Sciences (NASDAQ:ROIV) climbed 6.5% and Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) advanced 7% after the companies announced a global settlement valued at $2.25 billion. The agreement settles patent infringement litigation concerning lipid nanoparticle - LNP - delivery technology used in Moderna's Spikevax COVID-19 vaccine.
Under the settlement, Moderna will make an upfront payment of $950 million to Genevant Sciences, a Roivant subsidiary, and Arbutus in July 2026. The agreement also contemplates an additional $1.3 billion payment that would become payable only if an appellate court issues a favorable ruling that 28 U.S.C. § 1498 does not bar claims against Moderna for patent infringement, except for doses given to U.S. government employees.
The settlement resolves all pending U.S. and international enforcement actions related to Moderna’s use of Genevant’s and Arbutus’ LNP delivery technology in Spikevax. As part of the agreement, Moderna consented to entry of a judgment finding infringement and no invalidity on four patents held by Genevant and Arbutus.
If the contingent $1.3 billion payment is realized, the companies said it would amount to the largest disclosed patent settlement in the pharmaceutical industry and the second largest disclosed settlement across all industries.
Additional commercial terms include a global non-exclusive license granted by Genevant to Moderna for the LNP delivery technology as it applies to SM-102-containing mRNA vaccines for infectious disease applications. Genevant also provided a covenant not to sue on certain patents and products specified in the agreement.
Separately, Roivant’s board approved a $1 billion share repurchase program. That authorization incorporates a prior $500 million share-buyback approval that was granted in June 2025. The company also highlighted that litigation involving Pfizer and BioNTech remains active following a favorable Markman ruling in September 2025. The notice observed that Comirnaty sales account for roughly two-thirds of global COVID-19 mRNA vaccine sales to date.
The settlement settles the disputes between Moderna and Genevant/Arbutus over LNP use in Spikevax but leaves outstanding litigation with other manufacturers and the contingent appellate outcome that will determine whether the full $2.25 billion is paid.