CBPE acquires Simbec-Orion

The company's management team reinvested as part of the deal, while the GP drew capital from CBPE Capital Fund IX.

Financial details of the transaction remain undisclosed, though the vehicle targets companies with enterprise values of £25-150m and typically writes equity cheques of £25-30m.

Simbec-Orion generated an adjusted operating profit of £71,000 from a turnover of £27.2m in 2017, according to publicly available documents.

Following the investment, the group will pursue international expansion, with a particular focus on the European and North American markets. It will also look to make bolt-on acquisitions and invest in the enhancement of its facilities and operations.

As part of the deal, CBPE partner Anand Jain and investment manager Adam Richardson will take seats on the Simbec-Orion board of directors.

Company
Founded in 2014 via the merger of Simbec Research and Orion Clinical, Simbec-Orion is a contract research organisation serving biotechnology firms and small- and mid-cap pharmaceutical companies. The business, which is headquartered in Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorgan, specialises in research related to oncology, rare diseases and orphan indications, respiratory conditions and translational medicine. It provides clinical development services including phase-I to phase-III patient programmes, project management, clinical operations, data management, statistics, IMP management, central laboratory and pharmacovigilance services.

Simbec-Orion had a headcount of around 270 in 2017.

People
CBPE Capital - Anand Jain (partner); Jolyon Latimer (director); Adam Richardson (investment manager).
Simbec-Orion - Ronald Openshaw (CEO).

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• Topics
• Buyouts
• UK / Ireland
• Healthcare
• United Kingdom
• Close Brothers Private Equity (CBPE)