23andMe and its user data will soon belong to a pharmaceutical giant

23andMe will keep offering customers its DNA testing services after being bought out of bankruptcy. New York-based biotech company Regeneron Pharmaceuticals announced an agreement on Monday to purchase the 23andMe startup for $256 million, alongside its Total Health and Research Services business and biobank of customer data and genetic samples.

Regeneron is the winner of 23andMe’s bankruptcy auction, which required all bidders to comply with applicable laws and the firm’s privacy policies around customer data. 23andMe says that customer data is anonymized and that stored genetic samples are destroyed when users delete their 23andMe accounts, but it’s unclear how much information is retained and may, therefore, soon be in Regeneron’s hands.

The acquisition is expected to close later this year, subject to US Bankruptcy Court approval. If all goes ahead, Regeneron co-founder George D. Yancopoulos says the purchase will further the company’s “large-scale genetics research” into future drugs and treatments.

23andMe has collected genetic samples and data from more than 15 million customers since launching its at-home DNA testing kit business. Once briefly valued at $6 billion after going public in 2021, the company filed for bankruptcy in March after failing to turn a profit. Its co-founder and former CEO, Anne Wojcicki, simultaneously stepped down from the company.

“We are pleased to have reached a transaction that maximizes the value of the business and enables the mission of 23andMe to live on, while maintaining critical protections around customer privacy, choice, and consent with respect to their genetic data,” said 23andMe chair Mark Jensen. “We are grateful to Regeneron for offering employment to all employees of the acquired business units, which will allow us to continue our mission of helping people access, understand, and gain health benefits through greater understanding of the human genome.”