NewSpring Portfolio Company Paragon Bioservices to be Acquired for $1.2B
April 25, 2019
Radnor, PA - April 25, 2019 - NewSpring (the “Firm”), a family of private equity funds, announced today that Paragon Bioservices, Inc. (“Paragon”), a portfolio company of NewSpring Healthcare ("NewSpring"), the Firm’s dedicated healthcare strategy, has entered into an agreement to be acquired by Catalent, Inc. (NYSE:CTLT) for $1.2 billion.
Paragon's expertise in gene therapy development and manufacturing, particularly their success in the specialized field of viral vector scale-up, has positioned it to capitalize on strong industry tailwinds in the potentially $40 billion addressable vaccine and gene therapy market. Paragon is one of only a few companies that has the advanced capabilities, technical expertise, and quality systems necessary to manage large-scale viral vector production. It has partnered with over 20 of the world’s top pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies developing gene therapies, next generation vaccines, oncology immunotherapies, and other complex biologics.
NewSpring’s relationship with Paragon originated from a successful meeting between Dr. Marco Chacon, Founder and Chairman of the Board at Paragon Bioservices, and Dr. Kapila Ratnam, a NewSpring Healthcare Partner. Dr. Ratnam went on to serve as an active Board Member at Paragon throughout the life of the investment and continues to work closely with Paragon’s President and CEO, Pete Buzy, on several key initiatives, including the build out of an experienced and dynamic management team. Since NewSpring’s initial investment in 2014, Paragon’s operations grew from a small manufacturing facility primarily producing early phase clinical trial material, to a large 200,000 square-foot GMP manufacturing facility capable of commercial-scale gene therapy production.
"Our existing investors, NewSpring Healthcare and Camden Partners were extremely supportive in getting us to where we are today,” said Pete Buzy, Paragon President and CEO. “To be able to join forces with a leading drug development and manufacturing partner like Catalent will enable us to continue to grow and expand our capabilities for the benefit of our customers and their patients."
“We have enjoyed working with Pete, Marco, and the entire Paragon management team throughout our investment,” said Dr. Kapila Ratnam. “With a background in the pharmaceutical industry, this investment was always an exciting one for me, full of opportunity and potential. Pete is an innovative leader and with his background in manufacturing, we made a great team. We couldn’t be happier with this successful outcome and wish Paragon continued success.”
The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the second quarter of 2019.
About Paragon Bioservices, Inc.
Paragon Bioservices, Inc. is an industry-leading, private-equity-backed contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) whose focus is the development and manufacturing of cutting-edge biopharmaceuticals. Paragon aims to build strong client partnerships with the world's best biotech and pharma companies, focusing on transformative technologies, including gene therapies (AAV), next-generation vaccines, oncology immunotherapies (oncolytic viruses), and other complex biologics. For more information, please visit www.paragonbioservices.com