Tokyo, Japan, December 17, 2021 – CJP SP Holding, L.P., an investment fund operated and managed by global investment firm Carlyle (NASDAQ: CG), signed an agreement to sell 100% of its investment in Sunsho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd (“Sunsho Pharmaceutical”), a contract manufacturing company of health & nutrition (“H&N”) and pharmaceutical products, to Towa Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (“Towa Pharmaceutical”), a company specializing in research and development, production, and marketing of generic drugs. The transaction is expected to be completed in February of 2022.
Headquartered in Shizuoka, Sunsho Pharmaceutical is one of the largest contract manufacturers in Japan for soft capsules, seamless capsules, and other dosage forms for H&N and pharmaceutical use. The company focuses on producing absolute quality products and applies state-of-the-art contract manufacturing technology to create cutting-edge formulations and capsules.
CJP SP Holding, L.P. acquired a 100% stake in Sunsho Pharmaceutical in August of 2014 through Carlyle’s third Japan buyout fund, Carlyle Japan Partners III, having recognized the company’s strong growth potential as a contract manufacturer in a steadily growing H&N market in Japan. Carlyle also saw the potential for value creation with Sunsho Pharmaceutical and within the H&N market in Japan by leveraging its local team knowledge, global platform strengths and deep experience in the healthcare and consumer sectors.
Through Carlyle’s ownership, Sunsho Pharmaceutical strengthened its management structure and governance, initiated the launch of a new factory and research and development facility to enhance production capabilities, diversified its business portfolio to cater to new customers, and significantly increased its global revenues by bolstering and expanding its overseas business. Carlyle also worked closely with Sunsho Pharmaceutical’s management team to help drive innovation and co-create new value-add products and solutions with customers.
Carlyle will transition full ownership to Towa Pharmaceutical to support Sunsho Pharmaceutical’s next phase of growth.
Carlyle has made 31 investments in Japan since entering into the market in 2000 and this will be the 20th exit to date. Carlyle has a well-established history of investing in the healthcare sector, both in Japan and globally, investing more than US $14.7 billion of equity in over 80 deals in the global healthcare sector as of September 30, 2021. Healthcare investments in Japan include Qualicaps Co., Ltd., and Solasto Corporation.
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About Carlyle
Carlyle (NASDAQ: CG) is a global investment firm with deep industry expertise that deploys private capital across three business segments: Global Private Equity, Global Credit and Global Investment Solutions. With $293 billion of assets under management as of September 30, 2021, Carlyle’s purpose is to invest wisely and create value on behalf of its investors, portfolio companies and the communities in which we live and invest. Carlyle employs more than 1,800 people in 26 offices across five continents.
Further information is available at www.carlyle.com. Follow Carlyle on Twitter @OneCarlyle.
About Sunsho Pharmaceutical
Sunsho Pharmaceutical is a company that plans, develops, and conducts contract manufacturing of H&N and pharmaceutical products, being a leading player of the H&N market in Japan. Sunsho Pharmaceutical has full-line factories in Shizuoka and offers contract manufacturing and packaging of soft capsules, seamless capsules, and other dosage forms. In addition to its manufacturing capability and technology, Sunsho Pharmaceutical has top-class ability in R&D technology, sales force and quality control system. The company has various certificates including cGMP, GMP, and HACCP. The company was founded in 1993 and currently employs 690 individuals.
For more information, visit the company website at: https://www.sunsho.co.jp/en/
Media Contacts:
Carlyle
Lonna Leong
+852 9023 1157
lonna.leong@carlyle.com
Kekst CNC
Jochen Legewie / Minako Otani
+81 3 5156 0185 / +81 3 5156 0190
carlyle@kekstcnc.com
