Gyroscope takeout, one of U.K.’s largest, gives Syncona another gene therapy exit

Months after scuttling a planned IPO, gene therapy company Gyroscope’s choice to accept Novartis’ takeout bid will deliver early investor Syncona a 3x return immediately, with contingent payouts that could add more to the U.K. VC’s rewards.

Novartis AG (SIX:NOVN; NYSE:NVS) agreed to pay $800 million up front to acquire Gyroscope Therapeutics Holdings plc, a Stevenage, U.K., developer of ophthalmic gene therapies for retinal diseases that was founded in 2016...