Wojcicki Scores Surprise Triumph in 23andMe Sale

Anne Wojcicki has unexpectedly managed to regain control of 23andMe, the DNA-testing company, after two separate boards of directors had previously rebuffed her efforts to buy the business, instead pushing the company into bankruptcy.

In March, Wojcicki had quit as CEO when the company entered bankruptcy, and a month ago, 23andMe had said Regeneron, a major pharma company, would acquire the business for $256 million. Wojcicki then made an unsolicited $305 million offer for 23andMe this month through a nonprofit she controls; at 23andMe, she will resume running a much diminished company that has seen customers desert it amid concerns about what would happen to the genetic data it has accumulated.

Before the latest proposal, Wojcicki had said she would pay $40 million for 23andMe, a sum rejected by its board.