Private Company Edition: The global accelerator has new commitments from HHS and the Wellcome Trust. Also, Apollo buys into Sofinnova Partners with an up to €1bn investment, Castle Creek raised $124.6m in private funding this year in lieu of an IPO and Remix closed a $70m series B round. 

The latest drug development news and highlights from the Pink Sheet’s US FDA Performance Tracker

Organon commercial director and lead for the South Asia Region, Anjan Sen, lays out how the Merck spin-out expects to scale up activities in markets like India. A mix of new products, targeted repurposing efforts and access-driven pricing are part of the strategy that could potentially see the company double its presence in the region.

Pharma in India draws on celebrity endorsement to spotlight specific disease conditions, with social media adding new dimensions to these efforts. But do these campaigns, now facing increasing disclosure scrutiny more widely, deliver a return on investment?