Moderna agrees to pay up to $2.25 billion to settle COVID vaccine patent dispute

March 3 (Reuters) - Moderna has agreed to pay Genevant Sciences, a ‌subsidiary of Roivant Sciences, and Arbutus ‌Biopharma up to $2.25 billion to settle a ​long-running legal fight over the technology that made its COVID-19 vaccine possible, the companies said on Tuesday.

Under the deal, ‌Moderna will ⁠pay $950 million upfront in July 2026, with an additional $1.3 billion ⁠that depends on the outcome of a separate legal appeal.

In extended trading, ​Moderna's shares ​jumped more than ​10%, Arbutus rose ‌11%, while Roivant was up about 1%.

The deal resolves all U.S. and international legal actions accusing Moderna of using lipid nanoparticle, or LNP, a delivery ‌technology owned by ​Genevant and Arbutus, without ​permission in ​its COVID‑19 shot, Spikevax.

LNP technology ‌acts as a tiny ​protective shell ​that helps fragile mRNA molecules reach human cells intact, a key ​component that ‌allows mRNA vaccines to work.

(Reporting ​by Kamal Choudhury in Bengaluru; Editing ​by Alan Barona)