Novo Nordisk A/S
Company History
Novo Nordisk History: Founding, Growth & Key Milestones
Founded 1989 in Bagsværd, Denmark
When was Novo Nordisk founded?
Novo Nordisk was founded in 1989 in Bagsværd, Denmark by Hans Christian Hagedorn and Harald Pedersen, making it 37 years old.
- Founded
- 1989
- Founding place
- Bagsværd, Denmark
- Founders
- Hans Christian Hagedorn and Harald Pedersen
- Headquarters today
- Bagsvaerd, Denmark
- Milestones documented
- 13 (1923–2026)
- Current CEO
- Maziar Mike Doustdar
- Acquisitions
- 3
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1923 | Founding of Nordisk Insulinlaboratorium |
| 1925 | Founding of Novo Terapeutisk Laboratorium |
| 1989 | Merger of Novo and Nordisk |
| 2005 | Launch of Insulin detemir (Levemir) |
| 2009 | Launch of Victoza (liraglutide) |
| 2017 | Launch of Ozempic (semaglutide) |
| 2021 | Launch of Wegovy (semaglutide 2.4mg) |
| 2023 | SELECT Trial Results |
| 2024 | Catalent Acquisition |
| 2024 | FY2024 Financial Results |
| 2025 | CEO Change and Restructuring |
| 2026 | Wegovy Pill Launch |
| 2026 | Capital Markets Day |
- Where was Novo Nordisk founded?
- Novo Nordisk was founded in Bagsværd, Denmark in 1989.
- Who founded Novo Nordisk?
- Novo Nordisk was founded by Hans Christian Hagedorn and Harald Pedersen.
- When did Novo Nordisk start?
- Novo Nordisk was founded in 1989.
- How old is Novo Nordisk?
- Novo Nordisk is 37 years old as of 2026.
Founding Story
In 1922 Danish Nobel laureate August Krogh and his wife Marie, a physician with diabetes, learned of the Toronto discovery of insulin and secured rights to produce it in Scandinavia. With physician Hans Christian Hagedorn they started Nordisk Insulinlaboratorium in 1923. Brothers Harald and Thorvald Pedersen, who had worked with Nordisk, left after a dispute and founded rival Novo Terapeutisk Laboratorium in 1925. The two companies competed for more than six decades before merging in 1989.
Founders
Hans Christian Hagedorn
Hans Christian Hagedorn (1888-1971) was a Danish physician who co-founded Nordisk Insulinlaboratorium in 1923 with August and Marie Krogh after the Kroghs obtained rights to make insulin in Scandinavia. In 1936 he showed that adding protamine slowed insulin absorption, which led to NPH (Neutral Protamine Hagedorn) insulin, a long-acting insulin still used today. Nordisk merged with rival Novo in 1989 to form Novo Nordisk. (Exact birth year remains publicly undisclosed).
Harald Pedersen
Harald Pedersen and his brother Thorvald worked at Nordisk Insulinlaboratorium before a 1924 dispute led them to set up Novo Terapeutisk Laboratorium in Copenhagen in 1925. Harald designed the production equipment and the company's early insulin syringe, while Thorvald handled chemistry. Novo grew into a major insulin and enzyme producer and merged with Nordisk in 1989. (Exact birth year remains publicly undisclosed).
Key Milestones
Founding of Nordisk Insulinlaboratorium
August Krogh and Hans Christian Hagedorn founded the Nordisk Insulinlaboratorium in Copenhagen, securing the licensing rights to produce insulin for the Scandinavian countries.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgFounding of Novo Terapeutisk Laboratorium
Harald Pedersen and a group of Danish physicians founded Novo Terapeutisk Laboratorium to produce insulin and other biological products using industrial-scale fermentation processes.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgMerger of Novo and Nordisk
The $1.5 billion merger of Novo Industri and Nordisk Insulinlaboratorium was completed, creating Novo Nordisk A/S as one of the world's largest insulin manufacturers.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgLaunch of Insulin detemir (Levemir)
Novo Nordisk launched Insulin detemir, a long-acting basal insulin analog with a flat action profile and reduced risk of hypoglycemia compared to NPH insulin.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgLaunch of Victoza (liraglutide)
Novo Nordisk launched Victoza, the first once-daily GLP-1 receptor agonist, marking the company's strategic pivot from insulin to incretin-based therapies.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgLaunch of Ozempic (semaglutide)
Novo Nordisk launched Ozempic, a once-weekly GLP-1 receptor agonist for type 2 diabetes, which became the fastest-growing diabetes drug in history.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgLaunch of Wegovy (semaglutide 2.4mg)
Novo Nordisk launched Wegovy, a high-dose formulation of semaglutide for chronic weight management, demonstrating an average weight loss of 14.9% in the STEP-1 trial.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgSELECT Trial Results
Novo Nordisk announced the results of the SELECT trial, demonstrating a 20% reduction in major adverse cardiovascular events for semaglutide 2.4mg in non-diabetic obese patients.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgCatalent Acquisition
Novo Holdings completed its $16.5 billion acquisition of Catalent in December 2024, and Novo Nordisk bought three Catalent fill-finish sites in Italy, Belgium and Indiana for $11 billion to expand Wegovy and Ozempic capacity.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgFY2024 Financial Results
Novo Nordisk reported FY2024 net sales of ~$44.1 billion (DKK 290.4 billion), up 25% in DKK, and net profit of ~$15.4 billion (DKK 101.0 billion).
Source: sec.govCEO Change and Restructuring
Mike Doustdar replaced Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen as CEO on August 7, 2025, and in September the company announced about 9,000 job cuts. Lars Rebien Sørensen later became board chair after a dispute with the Novo Nordisk Foundation over board composition.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgWegovy Pill Launch
After FDA approval in December 2025, Novo launched the oral Wegovy pill in the US in January 2026; it passed 5 million prescriptions by August 2026 and received EU approval in July 2026.
Source: novonordisk.comCapital Markets Day
On September 21, 2026 Novo set 2030 targets of mid-single-digit sales growth and more than five multi-blockbuster launches; the shares fell about 8%.
Source: global.morningstar.comMajor Acquisitions
Akero Therapeutics
2025Novo agreed in October 2025 to buy Akero for up to $5.2 billion including a contingent value right, gaining efruxifermin, a phase 3 candidate for MASH (fatty liver disease).
Three Catalent fill-finish sites
2024Novo Nordisk paid $11 billion for three fill-finish sites (Anagni, Italy; Brussels, Belgium; Bloomington, Indiana) when Novo Holdings acquired Catalent for $16.5 billion.
Dicerna Pharmaceuticals
2021Novo Nordisk acquired Dicerna for $3.3 billion to gain control of its proprietary RNA interference (RNAi) technology platform, specifically the GalNAc conjugate technology for targeted liver delivery.
Keep researching Novo Nordisk
Novo Nordisk Company History FAQ
What are the historic milestones that define the century-long journey of Novo Nordisk?
Key milestones include: establishment of Nordisk (1923), founding of Novo (1925), discovery of NPH long-acting insulin (1936), launch of NovoPen (1985), historic merger into Novo Nordisk A/S (1989), spinoff of Novozymes (2000), launch of Victoza GLP-1 (2009), launch of Tresiba (2012), FDA approval of Ozempic (2017), launch of Rybelsus oral GLP-1 (2019), FDA approval of Wegovy for obesity (2021), 100th anniversary celebration (2023), and becoming Europe's most valuable company (2023-2024).
How did the historic 1989 merger between Novo and Nordisk take place?
In January 1989, after 65 years of intense corporate rivalry, Novo Industri A/S and Nordisk Gentofte A/S announced a historic merger of equals, creating Novo Nordisk A/S with a combined global market share controlling over 50% of the world's insulin market.
How did the 2009 launch of Victoza lay the foundation for the GLP-1 revolution?
Approved in 2009, Victoza (liraglutide) was Novo Nordisk's first once-daily human GLP-1 receptor agonist; liraglutide proved that native GLP-1 peptides could be chemically modified with a fatty acid chain to prolong half-life, providing the chemical blueprint for semaglutide.
When did the FDA approve Ozempic and how did it transform diabetes management?
In December 2017, the US FDA approved Ozempic (semaglutide once-weekly injection) for Type 2 diabetes, delivering blood sugar reduction (HbA1c) and strong weight loss, quickly becoming the global standard-of-care.
How did the June 2021 FDA approval of Wegovy ignite the modern anti-obesity era?
On June 4, 2021, the FDA approved Wegovy (semaglutide 2.4 mg) for chronic weight management based on the STEP clinical trials showing an average 15% to 17% body weight loss, unleashing viral global demand that permanently transformed metabolic medicine.
How did Novo Nordisk celebrate its centennial anniversary in 2023?
Novo Nordisk marked 100 years since the 1923 founding of Nordisk Insulinlaboratorium in 2023, the year it overtook LVMH as Europe's most valuable listed company.
What occurred during the landmark SELECT trial results in November 2023?
Presented at the American Heart Association and published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the SELECT trial demonstrated that Wegovy reduced the risk of heart attack, stroke, and cardiovascular death by 20% in overweight/obese adults without diabetes, leading the FDA to approve Wegovy for cardiovascular risk reduction in March 2024.
What is Novo Nordisk's corporate vision for the next century of healthcare?
Novo Nordisk envisions defeating serious chronic diseases, eradicating diabetes and obesity as global epidemics, pioneering cell therapies to restore beta cell function, and discovering cures for complex cardiometabolic and rare blood diseases.
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