Moderna has agreed to pay up to $2.25 billion to settle a patent dispute over the lipid nanoparticle technology used in its Spikevax COVID-19 vaccine. The biotech giant will pay Genevant Sciences and Arbutus Biopharma $950 million upfront in July 2026, with an additional $1.3 billion tied to the outcome of a separate legal appeal.

This settlement resolves all U.S. and international legal actions accusing Moderna of using LNP delivery technology without permission. The technology acts as a protective shell that helps fragile mRNA molecules reach human cells intact, a critical component that enabled mRNA vaccines to work. In extended trading, Moderna's shares jumped more than 10%, Arbutus rose 11%, while Roivant was up about 1%.

The agreement marks the end of a long-running legal fight over the intellectual property behind one of the most successful vaccines in history. The dispute centered on whether Moderna properly licensed the lipid nanoparticle technology from Genevant and Arbutus, which had been developing the delivery system for years before the pandemic.