XOMA Royalty Corporation (XOMA)

XOMA Royalty Corporation, based in Emeryville, California, was a biotechnology royalty aggregator. The company was founded in 1981 and operated for decades as a developer of antibody-based drugs under the name XOMA Corporation. Its shares were listed on Nasdaq under the symbol XOMA. The company has been headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area for most of its history.

In the second half of the 2010s the company shifted away from developing drugs itself. It built a business based on acquiring the future economic interests, such as royalties and milestone payments, tied to therapeutic candidates that are licensed to pharmaceutical or biotechnology companies. It focused mainly on early to mid-stage clinical assets in Phase 1 and 2. The model gave drug developers non-recourse funding which they could use to advance internal candidates or for general corporate purposes, and left XOMA with a diversified portfolio of roughly 70 assets. Its preferred shares also traded on Nasdaq under the symbols XOMAO and XOMAP alongside the common stock.

The company later adopted the name XOMA Royalty Corporation to reflect its focus. It operated with a small staff and relied on a large number of partner programs for potential revenue.

On April 27, 2026, XOMA announced that Ligand Pharmaceuticals would acquire it for $39.00 per share in cash. Each share and equity award holder also received a non-transferable contingent value right entitling the holder to a portion of 75 percent of the net proceeds from certain pending XOMA litigation. Leerink Partners and H.C. Wainwright advised XOMA, and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher served as legal advisor.

Royalty aggregation companies generate cash flows from royalties and milestone payments owed when partners advance drugs through development and sell approved products. XOMA's portfolio was diversified over many partners and programs, so no single program was expected to determine its results. Ligand has a comparable royalty and licensing model, which made the two companies a natural combination.

The contingent value right issued in the deal gives holders a share of proceeds from specified litigation, and the amount ultimately payable, if any, depends on the outcome of that litigation. The CVR is not transferable and is not listed on an exchange.

Ligand completed the acquisition on July 14, 2026, and XOMA's common stock stopped trading on Nasdaq at closing. A Form 25 was filed on July 16, 2026, covering the common stock and the listed preferred shares. XOMA now operates as part of Ligand, a Nasdaq-listed biopharmaceutical royalty and technology company. Its preferred shares, listed as XOMAO and XOMAP, were also removed from Nasdaq as part of the transaction.