Quadria Capital invests $100 million in Aragen to boost pharma outsourcing services | 15 January, 2025

Contract research, development and manufacturing organisation Aragen has secured a $100 million investment from Quadria Capital, an Asia healthcare-focused private equity fund.

This gives Quadria a minority stake in Aragen, at a valuation of about $ 1.4 billion, primarily through fresh capital infusion, with a small portion from the sale of shares by existing investors, they said, in a joint communication.

The funding will support Aragen’s expansion of its capabilities and infrastructure, enabling the company to meet the growing demand for outsourcing services from innovators in the United States and Europe, it said.

The investment makes Quadria the second strategic investor in the company after Goldman Sachs. The development bolsters Aragen’s reputation in delivering quality “concept to clinic” and “concept to commercial” services to a global customer base comprising human, animal and plant health, it added.

“The announcement comes ahead of JPM Week 2025, where Aragen is expected to secure additional outsourcing partnerships,” it said. Manni Kantipudi, CEO, Aragen Life Science said, “Our expanded capabilities will allow us to support the rising demand for integrated discovery and manufacturing services, and, most importantly, help our customers accelerate their programs to market faster and more efficiently.”

With a 23-year history, Aragen looks to benefit from macro trends in the outsourcing market, “with Western innovator companies increasingly seeking to diversify and secure their supply chain as a hedge against operational disruptions due to global factors,” the note said.

The company’s ability to deliver—from early discovery through to commercial manufacturing for small molecules and biologics—has seen it grow its global clientele to 400-plus clients, including 15 of the top 20 large pharma companies.

Amit Varma, Managing Partner and co-founder of Quadria Capital added, “The pharmaceutical outsourcing sector presents compelling growth opportunities, especially in the current environment which is driven by global supply chain reorganisation.”

This investment also marks another milestone in Quadria’s continued focus on high-growth opportunities in the healthcare sector, it said. Quadria has a strong track record of successful investments in leading outsourced pharmaceutical services companies, including Akums Drugs (India’s largest domestic-focused contract manufacturer), Encube Ethicals (an India-based topicals-focused CDMO), and Straits Orthopedics (a Malaysia-based CDMO for orthopedic medical devices).

(Source: Business Line)