Pharmaron raises $40 Million

Pharmaron, the China-based company providing R&D services, has raised $40 million in the series C financing round from the already existing investors DCM, Legend Capital and others along with the new investor, GL Capital Group. Pharmaron will use this amount in order to expand its discovery services offerings, preclinical GLP (good laboratory practice) toxicology capabilities and GMP (good manufacturing practice) chemical synthesis services. This expansion will help Pharmaron satisfy the demands of their biopharm clients. “Building long-term partnership with CROs has become part of many pharmaceutical and biotech companies’ corporate strategy”, said Lou Boliang, Chairman and CEO of Pharmaron.

The company has been founded in 2003 and it provides R&D services such as discovery chemistry, biology, DMPK, GLP bio analytical services, GLP toxicology, in vivo pharmacology, pharmaceutical manufacturing and development. Currently, the company has more than 1,200 employees and provides expertise for the pharmaceutical markets of China, U.S., North America, Japan and Europe. Their mission is to help customers advance their projects in a cost and time-efficient manner.

During the last years, Pharmaron has visibly expanded its capacity and capability in the field of integrated drug discovery and the area of development services. This is the first Chinese company that has managed to successfully provide truly integrated drug discovery and development services from the stage of discovery to the stage of IND after integrating the U.S. FDA GLP compliant toxicology expertise in 2010. Dr. Lou Boliang added the following: “We are pleased to have the continued confidence and strategic partnership of our existing and new investors in Pharmaron. This additional capital funding will allow Pharmaron to strengthen and expand drug R&D service capacities and capabilities, to better serve our partners. Recently, the pharmaceutical and biotech industry has undergone fundamental changes as it has responded to increased productivity demands. Building long-term partnership with CROs has become part of many pharmaceutical and biotech companies’ corporate strategy.”

Due to this investment, the management team at Pharmaron expects their sales to grow quickly. Also, the expressed confidence of already existing clients in the Pharmaron’s portfolio is expected to bring new clients worldwide as an amount of money will also be invested in the expansion of the display areas. The venture capitalists sustaining Pharmaron are very enthusiastic about the company’s products and its capacity of quickly expansion. Mr. Jeffrey Li, Founding Partner of GL Capital Group and former CEO of Novartis China stated the following: “Pharmaron has a proven track record in the CRO industry, providing highly dynamic access to scientific expertise and customer services when and where it is needed by pharmaceutical and biotechnology organizations. Our strategic investment in Pharmaron will boost Pharmaron’s service capability and capacity to serve the pharmaceutical and biotech industry better, which in turn will add additional value to all the stakeholders involved.”

As the biotechnology market continues to expand and the need for high-quality pharmaceutical products and customer services grows, the global market for CRO services is expected to reach gains of $27 billion in 2011 with a CAGR of 15 percent, announced in 2010 the report of Frost & Sullivan.