Swiss buyout firm Partners Group lands deal for stake in €900mn biotech firm

Swiss buyout fund Partners Group has bought a majority stake in FairJourney Biologics, a biotechnology company that has helped to discover novel antibody treatments for drugmakers including Johnson & Johnson, valuing the business at about €900mn.

London-based healthcare investor GHO Capital, the company’s owner since 2020, would retain a minority shareholding in the contract research organisation alongside its founder António Parada, according to people familiar with the matter.

The sale marks the biggest exit in GHO’s history, with the private equity group generating close to a potential 10-fold return after it bought a majority stake in FairJourney for just over €50mn four years ago, according to PitchBook.

Earlier this month, Partners, which had $147bn of assets under management at the end of last year, closed a $15.4bn fund, its largest yet, with a mandate to invest in four sectors, including healthcare.

FairJourney, whose labs are based in the Portuguese city of Porto and Cambridge in the UK, has contributed to the research behind 14 antibody treatments being studied in clinical trials to treat diseases such as cancer and autoimmune disorders.

Its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation were expected to reach €44mn, up from €10mn in 2020 when GHO bought a stake in the company, according to people familiar with the matter. Group revenues are projected to reach €79mn this year.

The deal follows a competitive auction process, with Partners swooping in at the last minute to outbid rival private equity investors. Private equity funds have stepped up investment in pharmaceutical services in recent years as pharma groups have divested manufacturing facilities and research and development assets, and leaned on outsourcers to reduce costs.

Buyout groups also favour pharma services as they benefit from R&D spending without exposing themselves to the risks of drug development. Earlier this year, Blackstone struck a $750mn deal to help fund development of Moderna’s flu vaccines.

Last year, a consortium of investors led by Elliott Management bought drug research outsourcer Syneos Health for $7.1bn including debt, while Advent International and Warburg Pincus bought Simtra, the contract drug manufacturer spun out of Baxter International, for $4.2bn.

Partners has invested billions of dollars in the healthcare and life sciences sector in recent years. The buyout fund bought Greece-based generics manufacturer Pharmathen in 2021 for €1.6bn including debt and last year invested alongside GHO in drug manufacturing outsourcer Sterling Pharma Solutions.

The Partners investment was led by Pascal Noth, head of European healthcare and life sciences at the fund. JPMorgan advised GHO on the deal. GHO said the investment from Partners would “further broaden FairJourney’s innovative offering, whilst maintaining its leading position in the space”. Partners did not immediately respond to a request for comment while JPMorgan declined to comment.

FairJourney has a partnership with Argenx, one of Europe’s largest biotechs, to discover new antibody treatments. It has also worked on drug development for US pharma company J&J and Danish biotech group Genmab.