The Bundeskartellamt has approved Novo Nordisk A/S's acquisition of Cardior Pharmaceuticals GmbH, a biotech company focusing on heart diseases, particularly cardiac insufficiency. Cardior's main product targets heart failure caused by heart attacks but is still in the development phase.

Novo Nordisk, an international pharmaceutical company known for diabetes and obesity treatments like Wegovy and Ozempic, aims to enhance its expertise in cardiovascular diseases through this acquisition. The Bundeskartellamt found no competition issues as the companies' products target different patient groups and work in distinct ways.

The transaction value threshold, introduced in the German Competition Act in 2017, enabled the Bundeskartellamt to review this merger despite Cardior's low turnover. This provision allows scrutiny of deals over 400 million euros, even if the target generates minimal revenue. Novo Nordisk's acquisition of Cardior is valued at up to 1.025 billion euros.