Our unique history

Since we created Merck Serono in 2007, we’ve built a strong, successful business with a reputation for pushing the boundaries of medical science. Today, our bright future as a biopharmaceutical leader owes a great deal to our proud past.

Our story began when the German chemical and pharmaceutical group Merck acquired Serono, the Swiss-based biotechnology leader, integrating two companies with a total of over 400 years of experience in drug-making.

Merck KGaA has a history dating back to 1668, when Friedrich Jacob Merck acquired the Engel Apotheke (“Angel pharmacy”) in Darmstadt, Germany. Serono’s roots as a pioneer in the use of recombinant DNA technology go back to Italy in the early 1900’s.