Novo Holdings has agreed to acquire Altasciences from Audax Private Equity.
Altasciences is an integrated early drug development services platform, providing the pharma and biotech industries with preclinical safety testing through clinical proof-of-concept studies. In the past decade, the company has grown both organically and through acquisitions and operates in the preclinical safety testing, clinical pharmacology, bioanalytical, CRO services, and CDMO markets. Headquartered in Laval, Canada, Altasciences operates six facilities in the US and Canada and employs more than 1300 people.
The company’s offering is tailored to the needs of small and medium-sized biopharma sponsors. The acquisition by Novo Holdings is aimed to help Altasciences continue its growth trajectory, including further domestic and international expansion.
Abhijeet Lele, Senior Partner, Head of Principal Investments in the U.S. at Novo Holdings, said: “The Altasciences team has done an impressive job of building an innovative company that plays an essential role in bringing innovative drugs to patients and is well-positioned to capture share in the fast-growing market for drug development services. We are excited about this investment and look forward to leveraging our network to continue growing Altasciences in collaboration with the management team.”
Chris Perkin, CEO of Altasciences, added: “This is an exciting day for Altasciences. We are very pleased to be partnering with Novo Holdings in the next phase of our exciting journey, given their exceptional reputation, track record, and broad portfolio of high-growth healthcare companies. We look forward to continuing our ambitious growth plans and commitment to providing clients with value-added services that offer a new paradigm of drug development outsourcing.”
The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the first half of 2021.
