* Deal adds to Novartis' established immunology franchise

* Marks drugmaker's second acquisition in a week

* Transaction expected to close in second half of 2026

By Marleen Kaesebier and Bhanvi Satija

March 27 (Reuters) - Swiss drugmaker Novartis

will buy California-based biotech company Excellergy in a deal

worth up to $2 billion, it said on Friday, extending its

anti-allergy range and in line with plans to increase its U.S.

focus.

A week ago it announced another deal to buy a breast cancer drug

candidate for up to $3 billion from U.S. biotech firm

Synnovation Therapeutics.

Novartis will pay up to $2 billion in upfront and milestone

payments for Excellergy, it said, adding the deal is expected to

close in the second half of 2026, subject to customary

conditions, including regulatory approvals.

INCREASED RANGE OF ANTI-ALLERGY DRUGS

Excellergy's food allergy drug candidate, Exl-111, would extend

Novartis' existing anti-allergy franchise, which includes its

blockbuster Xolair, used for allergic asthma and other

conditions, that faces increased competition in some EU markets.

A biosimilar, or drug similar to one already approved, was

introduced to EU markets late last year after some patents

expired for Xolair, which is sold by Novartis outside the U.S.

and by Swiss peer Roche's Genentech in the United

States.

Like Xolair, Exl-111 also targets the immune system's IgE

antibodies but is longer-acting and designed to bind more

tightly and remove IgE from its receptor.

It has been shown to suppress allergic signaling faster and

more effectively than existing drugs in early studies but the

benefit has yet to be tested in larger human trials.

In April last year, Novartis said it planned to invest $23

billion to build and expand its facilities in the United States

through the following half decade.

So far the company has begun construction on R&D and

manufacturing sites across four states, including California,

and expanded its radioligand therapy facilities in Indiana and

New Jersey.