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 d ... Read full article.