Synova returns to life sciences with Charnwood investment

Financial details were not disclosed.

This is the second investment for Synova's latest vehicle, following on from Preventx in October last year. The GP held a first and final close for Synova IV on its £365m hard-cap in June 2019, after less than three months on the road. The new fund writes equity cheques of £10-60m for companies with enterprise values in the £20-100m range, aiming to make 8-12 platform investments. As with its predecessors, Synova IV invests based on selected themes, which typically include shifting demographics and digitalisation. Its predecessor, Synova III, is fully deployed in terms of primary investments.

The GP stated that the deal would provide Charnwood with additional investment to support its continued development and growth. Beyond organically expanding its service offering, Charnwood will also look at selective acquisition targets.

Synova has introduced Ben Cons, who previously held senior roles at GSK and Quintiles, to the company's board as chairman.

The deal sees Synova returning to the life sciences sector, with its previous investment being Kinapse in 2012 – the investment eventually yielded a 16.1x return on exit in 2016.

Company
Founded in 1998 as a spinout from Loughborough University, Charnwood initially focused on outsourced chemical synthesis services for the life sciences industry. The business has since expanded to establish higher-value services in synthesis, medicinal chemistry and scale-up research for new drugs.

People
Synova Capital – Tim Ashlin (partner and head of healthcare); Zachary Tsai (investment director); Mike Mullally (investment manager).

Advisers
Equity – Alantra (corporate finance); Addleshaw Goddard (legal); PwC (financial due diligence, tax); LEK Consulting (commercial due diligence).
Company – CCD Partners (corporate finance).

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Send to  

• Topics
• Buyouts
• UK / Ireland
• Healthcare
• Synova Capital