News

Genstar Capital has agreed to acquire Columbia, Maryland-based Advarra from Linden Capital Partners. No financial terms were disclosed. At the closing of the deal, Linden plans on reinvesting in Advarra via a minority investment. Advarra is a provider of institutional review board, institutional biosafety committee and compliance and regulatory consulting services.

PRESS RELEASE

COLUMBIA, Md.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Advarra, the “Company,” the premier provider of institutional review board (IRB), institutional biosafety committee (IBC), and compliance and regulatory consulting services, is pleased to announce that Genstar Capital, a leading private equity firm with expertise in drug research and healthcare, has recently signed a definitive agreement to acquire the Company from Linden Capital Partners (“Linden”), which intends to reinvest in the Company via a minority investment upon completion of the transaction.

“We are grateful for our partnership with Linden and are excited to partner with Genstar Capital for the next phase of our growth to further enhance our commitment to Advarra customers and employees, our pursuit of research compliance excellence and innovation, and our dedication to improve the way researchers safeguard participants,” said Pat Donnelly, CEO, Advarra.

“Advarra’s leadership has built a company with a stellar reputation in the pharmaceutical regulatory compliance industry that provides unmatched service, user-friendly technology, and rapid turn-around times. We are excited to support Advarra in continuing to build upon its leading reputation, while expanding, both organically and through strategic acquisitions, into other ancillary services to continue adding value for its customers,” said David Golde, Managing Director, Genstar Capital.

In addition to Advarra, Genstar has invested in and helped grow numerous leading healthcare and drug research-based companies such as CRF Bracket, eResearchTechnology, and PRA Health Sciences.

“We have been proud to support Advarra over the past three and a half years through their impressive organic growth and M&A activities, most recently with the acquisition and integration of Quorum Review IRB and Kinetiq Consulting. Advarra is very well positioned to continue on its growth trajectory, building on a long history of strong values, culture, and vision, superior human subject protection, and leading therapeutic area specialization,” said Tony Davis, President and Managing Partner, Linden. He added, “We are excited about our intention to invest alongside Genstar and continue to support Advarra through its next phase of growth.”

About Advarra
Advarra, headquartered in Columbia, MD, provides institutional review board (IRB), institutional biosafety committee (IBC), and global research compliance services to clinical trial sponsors, CROs, hospital systems, academic medical centers, and investigators. Its robust regulatory expertise and innovative technology ensure the highest standards of research review are met, while putting participants first and meeting complex human research protection oversight requirements. Advarra supports all phases of research across all therapeutic areas.

For more information, visit advarra.com.

About Genstar Capital
Genstar Capital (www.gencap.com) is a leading private equity firm that has been actively investing in high quality companies for over 30 years. Based in San Francisco, Genstar works in partnership with its management teams and its network of strategic advisors to transform its portfolio companies into industry-leading businesses. Genstar currently has approximately $17 billion of assets under management and targets investments focused on targeted segments of the software, industrial technology, healthcare, and financial services industries.

About Linden Capital Partners
Linden Capital Partners is a Chicago-based private equity firm focused exclusively on investing in the healthcare industry. Linden’s strategy is based upon three elements: i) healthcare specialization, ii) integrated private equity and operating expertise, and iii) strategic relationships with large corporations. Linden invests in middle market platforms across the medical products, specialty distribution, pharmaceutical, and services segments of healthcare. For more information, please visit www.lindenllc.com.