As antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) continue to transform cancer treatment and shift from a niche modality to a core component of oncology portfolios, biopharmaceutical companies are lining up to license Lonza’s ADC technology.

In the month of June, the global contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) — headquartered in Switzerland — has signed licensing agreements with four U.S. biopharma companies, including AmMax Bio, Antharis Therapeutics, InduPro, and Stipple Bio.     

AmMax and Lonza have agreed to a non-exclusive licensing deal in which Lonza’s exatecan-based SYNtecan linker-payload platform will be used for AmMax’s ADC candidate AMB-104. AmMax intends to submit an IND for AMB-104 in early 2027. AMB-104 combines Lonza’s conjugation and linker-payload technologies with AmMax’s clinically validated monoclonal antibody to deliver a tumor-targeted cytotoxic payload.

Through an exclusive target-specific licensing agreement, Antharis will secure rights to Lonza’s dual-payload ADC technology platform, which will be combined with Antharis’ proprietary discovery and development capabilities to advance highly differentiated, next-generation ADC programs for multicancer applications.

Under InduPro’s licensing deal with Lonza, InduPro will gain access to Lonza’s GlycoConnect antibody conjugation technology, HydraSpace polar spacer technology, and linker-payload technologies for the development of ADCs. The technologies will be used to support programs targeting up to two oncology antigens, combining InduPro’s bispecific antibody platform with Lonza’s ADC capabilities.

Stipple has signed a multi-target licensing agreement with Lonza to gain target-specific access to Lonza’s ADC platform — including GlycoConnect, HydraSpace, and a toxSYN linker payload — to enable the design of potential first-in-class and best-in-class products. GlycoConnect and HydraSpace are designed to support site-specific ADC development.

In addition, Lonza and Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) last month announced an exclusive single-target licensing agreement that gives BMS access to Lonza’s SYNtecan linker-payload platform to develop an ADC against an undisclosed target. Under the deal, BMS will be responsible for research, development, manufacturing, and commercialization of the ADC candidate.

Investing in ADC technology

The growth and technical demands of ADCs are driving CDMOs to enhance their capabilities. Lonza has made investments to provide its customers with a range of ADC offerings, including the expansion of bioconjugation at its Visp, Switzerland site with two additional manufacturing suites.

“We are expanding capacity as fast as we can,” Jan Vertommen, vice president and head of commercial development for Lonza’s Advanced Synthesis business unit, told Pharma Manufacturing. “We are constructing new suites that are basically committed and we are already thinking about the next phase.”

Vertommen said Lonza is looking to add bioconjugation capabilities in the United States.

“Visp is now the center of excellence and, of course, we are now looking at the U.S. with all the geopolitical dynamics,” he added. “We certainly want to have bioconjugation in the U.S. as well. We’re looking at internal options. We have sites where we could build these suites. But we are also looking at the greenfield option.”  

Overall, Vertommen noted Lonza is in a strong position when it comes to ADCs, claiming the CDMO is “involved in more than half of the commercial products” in the market. 

In 2023, Lonza announced the extension of a collaboration with a “major biopharma partner” for the commercial-scale filling of ADCs. Under the terms of the agreement, Lonza is constructing a dedicated cGMP filling line at its Stein, Switzerland site.

That same year, Lonza acquired ADC company Synaffix and with the company its site-specific conjugation technologies. Synaffix in January 2026 signed a multi-target licensing agreement with U.S.-based biotech Sidewinder Therapeutics to advance the development of first-in-class bispecific ADCs for solid tumor indications.

Under the agreement, Sidewinder gains access to Lonza’s clinically validated, site-specific ADC technology platform, including antibody conjugation, polar spacer, and linker-payload technologies.

In February 2026, Lonza integrated its Synaffix ADC platform into its Advanced Synthesis offering at its Oss, Netherlands site, expanding support for early-phase ADC development and manufacturing. The platform includes antibody conjugation, polar spacer, and linker-payload technologies, and was recently expanded with dual-payload ADC capabilities intended to address tumor heterogeneity and drug resistance.