Enterprise Investors invests in PharmaSwiss SA
Warsaw, 20 May 2008 — Polish Enterprise Fund VI (PEF VI), a private equity fund managed by Enterprise Investors (EI), will invest €35 million in a capital increase transaction to acquire 12.7%
of PharmaSwiss SA, the largest third party pharma sales and marketing outsourcing company
in the Central and Eastern European region.
PEF VI will become an owner of PharmaSwiss alongside its two founders and the specialized healthcare investor HBM BioVentures, which invested in the company in 2007. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions.
Established in 2000 and based in Zug, Switzerland, PharmaSwiss offers full third party representation of specified drugs
or portfolios from research-based pharma and biotech companies, including drug registration, promotion, sales, compliance and pharma-covigilance. It represents several blue chip clients such as Bristol-Myers Squibb, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals,
Beaufour Ipsen, Astellas Pharma, Eli Lilly and Ferring.
PharmaSwiss currently operates in numerous countries in Southeast and Central Europe as well as Israel. In 2008 PharmaSwiss will launch operations in three new countries: Hungary, Romania and Poland.
Development plans for the following years include also entering Russia and Turkey. The company has nearly 500 employees. PharmaSwiss experienced significant growth in recent years and recorded revenues of more than €100 million in 2007.
“PharmaSwiss has proven that our business model is successful and can be rapidly developed across multiple markets. We have ambitious plans to enter new markets and new therapeutic areas in the coming years. The partnership with Enterprise Investors will be of substantial benefit to our company, providing additional capital and regional know-how,” said Petr Nemec, PharmaSwiss CEO and founder.
“PharmaSwiss is a very attractive partner for major pharma and biotech players that seek a sales footprint in this part of Europe. Our capital injection plus our regional experience, particularly in the larger CEE markets of Poland and Romania, will be utilized to further enhance the PharmaSwiss presence in these markets,” said Robert Manz, a managing partner of Enterprise Investors who is leading the investment.
Enterprise Investors is the oldest and one of the largest private equity firms in Central and Eastern Europe. Active since 1990, the company manages funds with capital exceeding €1.6 billion. These funds have invested €1 billion in 107 companies
in Poland and other Central and Eastern European countries, and exited 91 investments with total proceeds of over €1.3 billion.
Enterprise Investors has broad experience in investing in the pharmaceutical and healthcare market in the CEE region, having been a major investor in such Polish companies as Polfa Kutno (a pharmaceuticals producer), Polska Grupa Farmaceutyczna
(a pharma distributor), Pharmag, Apteka 21 (a chain of pharmacies), and Medycyna Rodzinna (a chain of primary care clinics).
EI was advised on the transaction by law firm Baer & Karrer and financial and tax advisors Ernst & Young.
PharmaSwiss was advised on the transaction by the law firm Walder Wyss & Partners.