Polyplus-transfection (Polyplus), a developer of cost-effective technology used in gene and cell therapy, has closed on a major investment from Warburg Pincus, a global private equity firm focused on growth investing. Warburg Pincus’ investment alongside the existing majority shareholder, European private equity healthcare specialist ArchiMed, will advance the development and sale of Polyplus’ breakthrough solutions for the delivery of nucleic acids (transfection) for research and the biologics-based production of therapeutic drugs and vaccines.
“Backed by their significant experience in healthcare and extensive network of resources, we are confident that Warburg Pincus, alongside ArchiMed, will further accelerate our market leadership by delivering increased value for the customers we serve,” says Gabriel Festoc, Chairman of the Executive Board at PolyGenX, the organisation that holds Polyplus.
“The investment will enable us to further expand production capacity, fuel continued innovation in products, and support key growth initiatives. We’ll also focus on international expansion and increased hiring across technical, regulatory and commercial support functions,” adds Karsten Wilking, CEO of Polyplus.
ArchiMed and Warburg Pincus will be equal shareholders with the same voting rights. Their partnership will enable Polyplus to access the combined resources of both firms and better serve customers. Polyplus’ management team will continue to be significant minority shareholders.
“We are excited to partner with ArchiMed and management to support the next phase of growth at Polyplus and drive further innovation in the rapidly expanding gene therapy market,” says TJ Carella, Managing Director at Warburg Pincus. Added Ruoxi Chen, Principal at Warburg Pincus, “Our investment demonstrates Warburg Pincus’ ongoing commitment to life sciences investing and our backing of leading companies that support research innovation and bio-production. Polyplus is a strong fit with that thesis, and we believe there is a significant opportunity to build it into the leading solutions platform in the category.”
“We’re re-investing an important part of the proceeds from this deal back into Polyplus because we’re convinced the management team can drive the company to unprecedented levels of market penetration and profitability,” says Denis Ribon, Chairman of ArchiMed. “Everyone in this deal shares precisely the same vision for the future of Polyplus and this industry.”
Added Loïc Kubitza, Partner at ArchiMed, says: “This investment validates an amazing growth story that’s only becoming more impressive. Polyplus was able to anticipate crucial bio-production needs in gene and cell therapy far ahead of anybody else, creating superior products that give customers flexibility to scale up bio-production. With Warburg Pincus joining us, Polyplus’ competitive advantage will widen further.”
ArchiMed invested in Polyplus in 2016 through its inaugural EUR150 million MED I fund. Over four years, Polyplus revenues have increased ten-fold, with ArchiMed holding 90 per cent of Polyplus prior to the transaction.
