After a period of cautious, smaller-scale dealmaking in the biopharmaceutical sector, the stage is now set for a major surge of mergers and acquisitions in 2026 - a surge defined by urgency, high valuations, and highly strategic targets.

Big Pharma faces a strategic crisis: the impending patent cliff threatens billions in revenue, making pipeline replenishment the industry’s most critical task. And historically a tool for market consolidation, M&A has become the de facto replacement for high-risk, long-cycle internal research and development (R&D). But does M&A truly solve the pipeline problem, or does it merely defer the crisis?

As we approach the second half of 2025, a look at the year’s most notable M&A deals in biopharma signals a defining period of strategic realignment, as companies race to acquire the assets and technologies that will shape the next decade of medicine.