The significant recapitalization of the Americas’ leading CDMO for pharmaceutical oral solid dosage formulation and clinical supply manufacturing will accelerate growth, including the build-out of state-of-the-art laboratories and Good Manufacturing Practices-compliant facilities.
Trans-Atlantic private equity healthcare specialist ArchiMed is the lead investor in an alliance recapitalizing Corealis Pharma. ArchiMed and fellow investor, the Caisse de dépôt et placement de Québec – the second largest pension fund in Canada with C$419 billion under management – are joining forces with founders and management through this recapitalization. The partnership will further expand the high-quality drug development services Corealis offers as a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization to small and medium-sized biotech and pharma companies. Cutting-edge capabilities and economically efficient outsourced services play a critical role in contemporary drug discovery and development.
Founded in 2005 and based in Laval, Québec, Canada, Corealis is the market-leading CDMO in the Americas for the formulation and manufacture of solid dosage oral pharmaceuticals – tablets, capsules and granules – during preclinical and clinical pre-commercialization trials. Corealis is the second investment of ArchiMed’s MED III fund, which closed on €650 million in August, after less than two months of fundraising.
“ArchiMed understood our strategy and offered an attractive investment thesis,” says Yves Roy, President of Corealis. “We turned down several higher offers from prospective suitors – trade and financial. Like us, ArchiMed understands the important potential of this industry and what it takes to get to the next level. As partners we’ll be able to capitalize on market leadership, aggressively expanding scientific strengths in R&D and our best-in-class regulatory-compliant manufacturing processes [such regulatory compliant processes are known as Good Manufacturing Practices or GMP].” Roy and fellow founders Patrick Gosselin and Yves Mouget retain a significant stake in Corealis.
“With Corealis’ expertise, CDPQ’s clout, and our knowledge of the international healthcare landscape, we’ve got the perfect combination to rapidly scale up in a fast-growing industry,” says ArchiMed Partner Robin Filmer-Wilson. Since 2019, Corealis’ sales registered average annual growth of more than 15 percent, a pace set to rise as drug formulation outsourcing increases in response to inflation and more demanding regulations. The deal was sourced through ArchiMed’s Pharma Services team, aided by ArchiMed’s MedTalents®, a global network of ArchiMed-associated senior healthcare executives who identify, facilitate and advise on deals and counsel portfolio companies.
MED III invests in small-cap healthcare sectors in Europe and the Americas, partnering with owners and managers. MED III also owns Europe-based Cardioline, which offers sophisticated, remote cardiology testing and diagnostics.
Fairmount Partners, a leading investment bank in the Pharmaceutical Services sector, served as exclusive financial advisor to Corealis.
About ArchiMed
www.archimed.group. With offices in the US and Europe, ArchiMed is a leading investment firm focused exclusively on healthcare industries. Its mix of operational, medical, scientific and financial expertise allows ArchiMed to serve as both a strategic and financial partner to North American and European healthcare businesses. Prioritized areas of focus include biopharmaceutical products & services, life science tools, medical devices & technologies, diagnostics, health technologies & software and consumer health. ArchiMed helps partners internationalize, acquire, innovate and expand their products and services. Over the last twenty years, ArchiMed’s leadership team has directly managed and invested in over eighty small to large-size healthcare companies globally, representing over €50 billion of combined value. ArchiMed manages €5 billion across its various funds. Since inception, ArchiMed has been a committed Impact investor, both directly and through its Eurêka Foundation.
About Fairmount Partners
Fairmount Partners (www.fairmountpartners.com) is an independent merger and acquisition advisory firm focused on emerging growth and middle-market companies. Fairmount helps its clients complete mergers and acquisitions, raise funds for growth, acquisitions and liquidity, and design and improve their corporate development strategies. Fairmount’s clients include successful entrepreneurs, private equity-sponsored enterprises, and global public companies. Since 2003, Fairmount has completed more than 265 transactions, representing over $14 billion in aggregate value, in 21 countries throughout North and South America, Europe, Asia and Australia.
