Management buy-out goes ahead at Synexus

The management team of Synexus has completed a buy-out in a private equity-backed deal in which Lyceum Capital have given up control of the clinical trial recruitment specialist.

The buy-out was supported by LDC, a U.K. mid-market, private equity company that is part of the Lloyds Banking Group. It is hoped this will enable Synexus to further expand both its branches of clinical research centers in the U.S, Asia, and South America and the range of therapy areas it focuses on.

“This will give us the firepower to continue expanding our international network and to broaden the number of therapy areas we offer to our pharma and CRO clients,” said Christophe Berthoux, CEO of Synexus. “We also need to continue to invest in our infrastructure and operations so that we carry on providing clients the best solution delivering thousands of patients and providing excellent quality data.

For the financial year ending December 2014, Synexus recorded revenues of $63m and profits of $12 million, representing a 140% increase in turnover since 2011. According to the company, its contracted order book currently stands at $216 million, an increase of $193 million since 2011. This growth has been achieved through a targeted buy-and-build strategy which has included launching new sites and acquiring four businesses since 2007, it stated.

Since being taken private in 2007, Synexus has expanded its international network from 13 to 25 dedicated research centers across eight countries. These centers are involved in more than 200 trials with 14,000 patients. Recent site openings have been in Hexham in the U.K. (a partnership with the National Health Service), Bochum in Germany, Bucharest in Romania, Poznan in Poland, and Sofia in Bulgaria. It also acquired a site near Cape Town in South Africa, and has a network of 25 affiliate sites.
 
By its tailored enrolment and retention strategies, Synexus aims to use its scale to deliver cost advantages and improve speed to market for new compounds, and it seeks to benefit from its investment in quality SOPs and dedicated scientific advisory boards for each therapeutic area.

LDC says it is backing the Synexus management to follow a strategy based on organic growth and acquisitions. The deal was led by LDC Director Ged Gould, who was supported by Investment Directors Simon Braham and Chris Wright. Gould will join the board of Synexus.
                                                 
“We believe this is a particularly good sector as pharma continues to outsource their development activity. Synexus as the world leader in its field will benefit from this trend as well as the continued growth of the healthcare industry,” he commented. "Christophe and the management team have done a fantastic job in building an international network in recent years and we are eager to further support the business break into new markets as it targets opportunities in the US, South America and Asia."

For the full press release, click here.