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Great Point Partners II Sells MaSTherCell Global to Catalent
Introduction
GREENWICH, CT and GOSSELIES, BELGIUM – Great Point Partners (“GPP”), a Greenwich-based private investment firm focused exclusively on the health care industry, is pleased to announce that it has signed a definitive agreement to sell GPP II portfolio company, MaSTherCell Global (“MaSTherCell”), a subsidiary of Orgenesis (NASDAQ: ORGS), to Catalent Pharma Solutions, Inc. after significantly growing the business. MaSTherCell, based in Belgium and Houston, Texas, is a leading technology-focused cell and gene therapy contract development and manufacturing (“CDMO”) partner for leading biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. GPP made a growth equity investment in MaSTherCell in June 2018 alongside Orgenesis, a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development, manufacturing and processing of technologies and services in the cell and gene therapy industry, and SFPI-FPIM, a Belgian sovereign wealth fund. In eighteen months, MaSTherCell has expanded from a single clinical facility in Belgium to three total facilities in the U.S. and EU, including a commercial manufacturing facility under construction.
Noah Rhodes, Managing Director at GPP commented, “We are very proud of what we accomplished with CEO Darren Head, President Denis Bedoret, our partners Orgenesis and SFPI-FPIM, and the entire MaSTherCell team in just over 18 months. During our ownership, we significantly expanded MaSTherCell’s manufacturing capacity, including establishing a U.S. facility in Houston, Texas, thereby creating a company that can serve biotechnology and pharmaceutical clients globally. We look forward to watching the company continue to grow under Catalent’s stewardship.”
“This is the second time I have had the opportunity to partner with GPP in building a contract development and manufacturing business serving life sciences companies. GPP’s expertise in growing global pharmaceutical services companies and their extensive network in the industry were integral to our success both times,” commented Darren Head, CEO of MaSTherCell.
Vered Caplan, CEO of Orgenesis, said, “When GPP reached out about an investment in our contract development manufacture organization, MaSTherCell, it was clear that they recognized the unique value of the company and the best way to position it for future growth. GPP’s experience bringing European pharma services businesses into the U.S. market was invaluable as we executed our growth plan for MaSTherCell.”
“Our theme-based investment approach helped us identify cell and gene therapy manufacturing as a significant growth area and led us to pursue MaSTherCell as a platform company in this area,” added Eddie Hjerpe, Vice President at GPP.
Founded in 2011, MaSTherCell has a 25,000 square-foot facility in Gosselies, Belgium providing clinical services, and construction is in progress on a dedicated 60,000 square-foot commercial-scale production and fill-finish facility nearby, which is scheduled to open in the fall of 2021 and ultimately add over 250 new jobs to the current team of over 240. Its 32,000 square-foot U.S. facility in Houston, Texas, upon completion of validation activities, will focus on development-scale projects and will employ a team of over 50 experts before the end of the year. MaSTherCell has a growing customer base and offers a unique portfolio of capabilities and technologies that include the development and manufacture of autologous and allogeneic cell therapies, as well as a variety of related analytical services. Its experience includes therapies based on chimeric antibody receptor-engineered T cells (CAR-T), T cell receptors (TCR), tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL), and mesenchymal stem cells (MSC).
About Great Point Partners
Great Point Partners (“GPP”), founded in 2003 and based in Greenwich, CT, is a leading health care investment firm, currently with approximately $2.0 billion of equity capital currently under management and 28 professionals, investing in the United States, Canada, and Western Europe. GPP is currently making new private equity investments from GPP III. Great Point manages capital in private (GPP I, $156 million and GPP II, $215 million of committed capital, and GPP III which has $306 million in committed capital) and public (BioMedical Value Fund family, approximately $1.5 billion) equity funds. Great Point Partners has provided growth equity, growth recapitalization, and management buyout financing to more than 100 growing health care companies. The private equity funds invest across all sectors of the health care industry with particular emphasis on biopharmaceutical services and supplies, outsourcing and alternate site care, and information technology enabled businesses. The firm pursues a proactive and proprietary approach to sourcing investments and tuck-in acquisitions for its portfolio companies. Reach Great Point at 203-971-3300 or www.gppfunds.com.
About Orgenesis
Orgenesis (NASDAQ: ORGS) is a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development, manufacturing and processing of technologies and services in the cell and gene therapy industry. The Company operates through two platforms: (i) a point-of-care (“POCare”) cell therapy platform (“PT”) and (ii) a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (“CDMO”) platform conducted through its subsidiary, Masthercell Global. Through its PT business, the Company’s aim is to further the development of Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (“ATMPs”) through collaborations and in-licensing with other pre-clinical and clinical-stage biopharmaceutical companies and research and healthcare institutes to bring such ATMPs to patients. The Company out-licenses these ATMPs through regional partners to whom it also provides regulatory, pre-clinical and training services to support their activity in order to reach patients in a point-of-care hospital setting. Through the Company’s CDMO platform, it is focused on providing contract manufacturing and development services for biopharmaceutical companies. Additional information is available at: www.orgenesis.com.
About SFPI-FPIM
The Belgian Federal Holding and Investment Company (Société Fédérale de Participations et d’Investissement / Federale Participatie- en Investeringsmaatschappij; SFPI-FPIM), was created on November 1, 2006 as a result of a merger between the Federal Participation Company and the Federal Investment Company. The Belgian federal government is SFPI-FPIM’s sole shareholder. SFPI-FPIM centrally manages the federal government’s shareholdings, cooperates with the government on specific projects, and pursues its own investment policy in the interests of the Belgian economy. The core business of SFPI-FPIM is as an investment company, to invest in companies with an attractive added value for society in one of the SFPI-FPIM priority sectors. As a holding company, it acquires equity in companies that are of strategic importance as far as federal policy is concerned, either making use of its own funds or by using funds that the state provides for a project.
About MaSTherCell Global, Inc.
MaSTherCell is dedicated to the industrialization and production of cell and gene therapies for leading biotech innovators. Its facilities enable cell therapy companies to benefit from state-of-the-art infrastructures and world-recognized experts, thus accelerating the arrival of cell therapies on the market. At the heart of MaSTherCell is a team of 240 highly dedicated experts combining strong experience in cGMP cell therapy manufacturing with a technology-focused approach and substantial knowledge of the industry. MaSTherCell’s goal is to help customers providing innovative and affordable treatments to patients, in a fast and cost-efficient way.