Moderna Inc. has entered into a settlement agreement resolving all worldwide Arbutus Biopharma Corporation/Genevant Sciences GmbH litigation related to Spikevax and mRESVIA. The agreement also provides certainty going forward for Moderna’s full infectious disease portfolio, including mNEXSPIKE, mCOMBRIAX and its future vaccine pipeline, with no future royalties owed. Under the terms of the agreement, Moderna will make a lump sum payment of $950 million in the third quarter of 2026.

Under the agreement, Moderna will appeal to the Federal Circuit to argue its government-contractor immunity defense limits its liability under federal statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1498. If Moderna ultimately prevails on that issue, no further payments will be due. If, however, the Federal Circuit affirms liability under Section 1498, Moderna has agreed to make an additional payment of up to $1.3 billion within 90 days of that decision, depending on the scope of the decision. Thereafter, should Moderna ultimately prevail through further proceedings—whether en banc, at the Supreme Court, or on remand to the district court—Arbutus/Genevant will refund the full payment plus interest.

“Resolving this legacy matter from our pandemic response removes uncertainty and allows us to turn our full focus to Moderna’s exciting near-term future,” said Stéphane Bancel, CEO of Moderna. “In 2026, we will return to revenue growth and end the year with a strong balance sheet, with more than $5 billion in liquidity, as we drive toward breakeven in 2028. This year we also expect the approval of our flu plus COVID combination and standalone flu vaccines, and several highly anticipated therapeutic clinical trial results in cancer and in rare disease. We remain focused on driving growth by delivering transformative medicines to patients.”

Moderna continues to actively enforce and defend its intellectual property portfolio, including affirmative claims against other market participants such as Pfizer and BioNTech.