Following approval by the antitrust authorities in the US and Europe, Nordic Capital Fund VIII, (“Nordic Capital”), and Novo A/S today announce the closing of the acquisition of ERT from Genstar Capital for an enterprise value of USD 1.8 bn. Nordic Capital Fund VIII will control 70% of the institutional equity and Novo A/S will hold the remaining 30%.
With 1,300 employees world-wide and with its headquarters in Philadelphia USA, ERT is a global leading provider of advanced high-quality electronic data collection solutions for clinical development programs. Their systems are widely used by pharmaceutical and biotech companies innovating drug and device therapies to optimize clinical trial management, and to document safety and efficacy clinical outcomes data.
Since its inception in 1972, ERT has developed from a technology start-up to a company that today supports the conduct of more than 1,500 clinical trials annually. This is achieved through the compilation of a variety of clinical outcome data from more than 2.7 million patients, in strict accordance with the standards defined by the major regulatory agencies.
Jim Corrigan, President and Chief Executive Officer of ERT said, “The acquisition of ERT by Nordic Capital Fund VIII and Novo A/S provides a new substantial financial and operational backing that will enable us to grow and expand the company’s activities further. The new ownership will fast-forward our development plans and deepen our service offerings, to meet the evolving needs of our customers.”
Building on ERT’s leading technology stronghold and operational performance within clinical outcomes data capture, analysis and reporting, the company’s management and new owners are aiming to pursue further add-on investments to expand the operational platform of ERT in the years to come.
Jonas Agnblad, Partner, NC Advisory AB, advisor to the Nordic Capital Funds commented, “Nordic Capital identified ERT as a very attractive investment opportunity in the eClinical market.It has deep insights into the clinical development process, an attractive technical platform and an outstanding competitive position.Nordic Capital is pleased to partner with Novo A/S to acquire ERT, given their dedicated life-science investment focus. Together, we are planning to invest in the company’s service offerings and operational footprint in the years to come.”
Dr. Raj Shah, Partner, NC Advisory (UK) LLP, advisor to the Nordic Capital Funds said “We are impressed by the investments made in the technical platform as well as management’s overall development of ERT as a trusted healthcare service partner and the leading healthcare technology provider. Their leadership position in the attractive eCOA market, supported by similar strong positions in Cardiac Safety and Respiratory Solutions, provides a robust platform for future growth”.
Commenting on the investment in ERT, Michael Shalmi, Head of Large Investments in Novo A/S said, “We are pleased to partner with Nordic Capital Fund VIII for the joint ownership and development of ERT, given their extensive health care related buy-out experience and excellent life science investment track record. The many growth options available to ERT, organically as well as by acquisitions, represent exciting investment opportunities which we look forward to pursuing in our partnership with Nordic Capital Fund VIII and the management of ERT”.
