By Maggie Fick

LONDON (Reuters) -Novo Nordisk’s late bid to hijack Pfizer’s takeover of U.S. obesity biotech Metsera marks an aggressive shift from the Danish drugmaker as it seeks to regain ground in the weight-loss drug market under a new CEO and board.

Novo, the drugmaker behind blockbuster weight-loss drug Wegovy and diabetes treatment Ozempic, launched a bid on Thursday for Metsera valuing the firm at some $9 billion and crashing Pfizer’s deal for the firm announced in September.

The move, after Novo had appeared to have been beaten out, comes a week after the Danish firm’s top shareholder dramatically took control of the company’s board, criticizing the old leadership for moving too slowly in the weight-loss drug race against main rival Eli Lilly in the lucrative U.S. market.

“We

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