An investor consortium led by AGIC Capital, an Asia-Europe cross-border growth equity firm founded by former Deutsche Bank executive Henry Cai, has agreed to acquire U.S. pharmaceutical firm the Ritedose Corporation from private equity firm Olympus Partners.
No financial details were announced. AGIC did not disclose the identities of participating investors in an announcement.
“Our strategy is to select high value, innovative and well managed companies that have significant potential for growth but need the finance and expertise to do so, particularly in new markets such as Europe and Asia. Ritedose ticks all of those boxes,” said Henry Cai, chairman of AGIC. “AGIC is fully committed to providing Ritedose with the resources and regional expertise to support the expansion of the customer base and identify business opportunities in China, and the rest of Asia.”
Ritedose, founded in 1995 in South Carolina, is a company focused on blow-fill-seal (BFS) manufacturing, a process in which plastic containers are blow-molded, filled with liquid product and sealed in one continuous operation under aseptic processing conditions. In addition, Ritedose also develops, manufactures and sells its own generic portfolio of respiratory pharmaceutical products.
The pharmaceutical packaging market was valued at US$65.55 Billion in 2015 and is projected to reach US$94.93 Billion by 2021, at a compound annual growth rate of 6.4% from 2016 to 2021, according to a Market and Markets report.
BFS technology has gained world wide acceptance in the injectable drug marketplace, replacing glass vial processing in many applications and is considered a superior method for aseptic filling of pharmaceuticals by various regulatory bodies such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
“We see tremendous potential for this business to expand capacity and grow further in this region. With the investment and management support from AGIC’s healthcare team, Ritedose will be able to navigate through the regulatory approvals it needs to accelerate its expansion in the U.S. and move into new markets in Europe and Asia, in particular China and Japan where demand for BFS in respiratory medicine is increasing,” said Sam Sun, managing director of AGIC.
AGIC, which reached a final closing of its debut US$1 billion fund in February, last acquired Fotona, a European manufacturer of high performance lasers, in April. It also acquired a large majority stake in Gimatic Srl, an Italian manufacturer of pneumatic and electric grippers for industrial automation, last summer.
The firm’s objective is to invest in European and U.S. small- and mid-cap companies in the areas of intelligent manufacturing, high-end equipment, advanced materials, medical technologies and environmental protection technologies, and assist with their expansion into the growing Asian markets, with a specific focus on China.
Source: chinamoneynetwork.com
