Merck Serono
Merck Serono is Merck KGaA's international biopharmaceutical division and brand, known as EMD Serono in the United States and Canada.
Last updated August 22, 2026
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Overview
Merck Serono is the international biopharmaceutical business of Merck KGaA, the German science and technology group headquartered in Darmstadt. The division was created through Merck KGaA's acquisition of control of Serono, a Swiss pharmaceutical company associated with the Bertarelli family. The transaction combined Merck's pharmaceutical activities with Serono's established biotechnology and specialty-medicine capabilities and created a business operating under the Merck Serono name in most markets. Merck KGaA announced in September 2006 that it intended to purchase the majority of Serono shares from Ernesto Bertarelli and the Bertarelli family. The merger was announced on 21 September 2006. Merck KGaA and Serono continued to operate as distinct entities during the transition, while Merck progressively secured majority ownership. By 5 January 2007, Merck held the majority of Serono shares, and the resulting company was established as Merck Serono International SA. The business initially retained an important Swiss connection, but in 2012 it moved its headquarters from Geneva to Darmstadt, aligning the division more closely with Merck KGaA's corporate center. The division's portfolio has covered several areas of pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical medicine. Its marketed products have included cancer therapies such as Erbitux; treatments for multiple sclerosis such as Rebif, Mavenclad, and Novantrone; reproductive-health products including Gonal, Ovidrel or Ovitrelle, and Luveris; growth-hormone products such as Saizen, Serostim, and Zorbtive; and established medicines including Glucophage, Concor, and Euthyrox. The portfolio has therefore combined innovative specialty medicines, biologic therapies, fertility products, and selected established brands rather than representing a single therapeutic category. The brand is not used uniformly worldwide. In the United States and Canada, Merck Serono operates as EMD Serono because the independent company Merck & Co. holds rights to the Merck name in those countries. This regional naming arrangement reflects the separate corporate identities of Germany's Merck KGaA and the United States-based Merck & Co., which are unrelated companies despite their shared historical name. Alongside commercial operations, Merck Serono has participated in collaborative research with academic, industrial, and public-sector partners. Its activities have included publicly funded projects in drug development and non-clinical safety assessment, including the InnoMed PredTox initiative, as well as research conducted through the Innovative Medicines Initiative involving the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations and the European Commission. These activities illustrate the division's role as both a medicine marketer and a participant in broader translational and preclinical research networks. Merck Serono's identity is consequently best understood as an international operating brand within Merck KGaA rather than as a fully independent listed company. Its corporate history is defined by the Merck-Serono combination, its global biopharmaceutical portfolio, the relocation of its headquarters to Darmstadt, and the use of EMD Serono in North American markets.
History
Merck Serono emerged from the combination of Merck KGaA's pharmaceutical operations with Serono, a Swiss pharmaceutical company. The transaction was one of the defining corporate events in the modern history of Merck KGaA's biopharmaceutical business. In September 2006, Merck KGaA announced its intention to purchase the majority of Serono shares from Ernesto Bertarelli and the Bertarelli family. The merger was announced on 21 September 2006, although the two organizations remained distinct during the transition period. Merck secured majority ownership by 5 January 2007. The resulting international company was named Merck Serono International SA, providing the basis for the Merck Serono brand used outside the North American markets where the Merck name is reserved for Merck & Co. The business thus inherited both Merck's German corporate identity and Serono's Swiss pharmaceutical and biotechnology heritage. It was not simply a new product label: it became an operating division through which Merck KGaA organized a broad international biopharmaceutical business. The headquarters initially remained in Geneva, reflecting Serono's Swiss origins. In 2012, Merck Serono moved its headquarters to Darmstadt, Germany, the headquarters of Merck KGaA. The relocation strengthened the division's connection with its parent group and marked a further stage in the integration that had begun with the acquisition. Merck Serono continued to operate as a major pharmaceutical division rather than as an independently listed corporation. Its product portfolio has included medicines in oncology, neurology, reproductive health, endocrinology, diabetes, cardiovascular care, and thyroid treatment. Erbitux represents the oncology component of the portfolio, while Rebif, Mavenclad, and Novantrone have been associated with multiple-sclerosis care. Fertility-related offerings have included Gonal, Ovidrel or Ovitrelle, and Luveris. Growth-hormone products have included Zorbtive, Saizen, and Serostim. The portfolio has also included established medicines such as Glucophage, Concor, and Euthyrox. This mixture of specialty therapies, biopharmaceuticals, and mature prescription medicines has given the division a broader scope than a single-disease biotechnology company. Merck Serono's geographical naming is shaped by the existence of two unrelated companies using the Merck name. In the United States and Canada, Merck KGaA's business is known as EMD Serono because Merck & Co. holds rights to the Merck name in those markets. The EMD Serono identity therefore serves as the North American expression of the same broader Merck KGaA pharmaceutical organization, while Merck Serono is used internationally. The division has also taken part in collaborative research beyond its internal development work. Publicly funded and cross-sector projects have included InnoMed PredTox, which concerned non-clinical safety assessment, and activities conducted within the Innovative Medicines Initiative framework. These programs involved cooperation among pharmaceutical companies, academic institutions, industrial partners, the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations, and the European Commission. Such work reflects the increasingly networked character of pharmaceutical research, where preclinical safety, translational science, and medicine development are pursued through partnerships as well as in-house laboratories. A notable portfolio event was the withdrawal of Raptiva in 2007. The withdrawal forms part of the division's product history, while the better-known continuing or established brands illustrate the range of medicines associated with Merck Serono. Overall, the brand's history is defined by the 2006-2007 Merck-Serono combination, the 2012 move to Darmstadt, a globally distributed pharmaceutical portfolio, and the regional use of EMD Serono in the United States and Canada.
- 2012
Headquarters relocated to Darmstadt
[1]Merck Serono moved its headquarters from Geneva to Darmstadt, Germany.
- 2007
Merck obtains majority ownership of Serono
[1]Merck KGaA held the majority of Serono shares by 5 January 2007, and the resulting company was named Merck Serono International SA.
- 2007
Raptiva withdrawn
[1]Raptiva was withdrawn from the Merck Serono product portfolio.
- 2006
Merck KGaA announces intended Serono acquisition
[1]Merck KGaA announced plans to acquire the majority of Serono shares from Ernesto Bertarelli and the Bertarelli family.
- 2006
Merck-Serono merger announced
[1]The merger was announced on 21 September 2006, beginning the process that created the Merck Serono international business.
Products and positioning
An international specialty-pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical division focused on innovative medicines, biologic therapies, fertility, neurology, oncology, endocrinology, and selected established prescription products.
Oncology medicine
Erbitux
Erbitux is an oncology product marketed within the Merck Serono portfolio. It represents the division's role in specialty cancer medicines and its focus on biologically oriented pharmaceutical therapies.
Multiple-sclerosis treatment
Rebif
Rebif is a medicine associated with Merck Serono's neurology portfolio, particularly its multiple-sclerosis business. It is one of the division's established specialty pharmaceutical offerings.
Multiple-sclerosis treatment
Mavenclad
Mavenclad is part of the Merck Serono portfolio for multiple-sclerosis care. Its inclusion illustrates the division's emphasis on specialist medicines for neurological disease.
Fertility medicine
Gonal
Gonal is a fertility and reproductive-health product in the Merck Serono portfolio. It belongs to the division's reproductive-medicine franchise, alongside Ovidrel or Ovitrelle and Luveris.
Fertility medicine
Ovidrel/Ovitrelle
Ovidrel, known as Ovitrelle in some markets, is a reproductive-health medicine marketed by Merck Serono. The dual naming reflects regional brand usage within its international portfolio.
Fertility medicine
Luveris
Luveris is a fertility-related medicine included among Merck Serono's reproductive-health offerings. It forms part of a broader portfolio serving assisted reproduction and fertility care.
Growth-hormone therapy
Saizen
Saizen is a growth-hormone product associated with Merck Serono. It represents the division's endocrinology and hormone-therapy activities.
Growth-hormone therapy
Serostim
Serostim is one of the growth-hormone products marketed in the Merck Serono portfolio. It sits alongside Saizen and Zorbtive within the division's hormone-related offerings.
Growth-hormone therapy
Zorbtive
Zorbtive is a growth-hormone medicine associated with Merck Serono's endocrinology portfolio. It is one of several hormone-related products listed among the division's marketed medicines.
Diabetes medicine
Glucophage
Glucophage is an established prescription brand included in the Merck Serono portfolio. It represents the division's presence in medicines for metabolic and diabetic conditions.
Cardiovascular medicine
Concor
Concor is an established cardiovascular medicine associated with Merck Serono. Its presence demonstrates that the division's range has extended beyond newer biotechnology products into mature prescription brands.
Thyroid medicine
Euthyrox
Euthyrox is an established thyroid-related prescription brand marketed within the Merck Serono portfolio. It forms part of the division's broader range of specialty and established medicines.
Biopharmaceutical medicine
Raptiva
Raptiva was a product associated with Merck Serono but was withdrawn in 2007. It is therefore part of the division's historical portfolio rather than its continuing marketed range.
Brand decisions
2012
Move headquarters to DarmstadtStrategyBackground
After the Merck-Serono combination, the division's headquarters remained in Geneva before being brought closer to the parent company's German corporate center.
Action taken
Merck Serono moved its headquarters from Geneva, Switzerland, to Darmstadt, Germany.
Aftermath
Darmstadt became the headquarters location of the international biopharmaceutical division and reinforced its integration with Merck KGaA.
2007
Withdraw RaptivaOtherBackground
Raptiva was part of the company's marketed product history but was subsequently removed from the market.
Action taken
Merck Serono withdrew Raptiva in 2007.
Aftermath
Raptiva became a discontinued product in the Merck Serono portfolio.
2006
Acquire majority control of SeronoM&ABackground
Merck KGaA sought to expand and strengthen its pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical business through control of Serono, whose shares were held in majority by Ernesto Bertarelli and the Bertarelli family.
Action taken
Merck KGaA announced the intended purchase in September 2006 and announced the merger on 21 September 2006.
Aftermath
Merck obtained majority ownership by 5 January 2007, and the combined international business operated as Merck Serono International SA.
Recent events
FDA approves BAVENCIO for first-line maintenance treatment[3]
Reported:
The US FDA approved the supplemental Biologics License Application for BAVENCIO for maintenance treatment of certain patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma whose disease had not progressed with first-line platinum-containing chemotherapy.
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