Novo Holdings to acquire Ritedose

COPENHAGEN, Denmark, Jan. 4, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Founded in 1995 and headquartered in Columbia, S.C., The Ritedose Corporation ("Ritedose") is a leading sterile pharmaceutical manufacturer, specialising in the use of blow-fill-seal (BFS) technology. Ritedose provides outsourced development and manufacturing of ophthalmology drugs, respiratory drugs, and vaccines. In addition, Ritedose develops and markets its own portfolio of generic drugs and is an emerging player in the outsourced sterile compounding market focusing on medically necessary drugs that are in short supply. Ritedose customers range from small start-ups and large pharmaceutical companies to wholesalers, retail pharmacies and hospital systems. Today, the company employs more than 400 people and is led by Chief Executive Officer Jody Chastain, who will continue to run the company under Novo Holdings' ownership.

Jonathan Levy, Senior Partner, Principal Investments at Novo Holdings, said: "Ritedose is a mission-driven company helping bring life-saving drugs to market with the highest focus on quality and sterility. We look forward to partnering with Jody and the Ritedose team as they continue to deliver best-in-class quality solutions to the biopharmaceutical industry."

Abhijeet Lele, Senior Partner and Head of Principal Investments US at Novo Holdings, added: "The investment in Ritedose is perfectly aligned with our deep expertise in pharma services. We see myriad opportunities to have an impact at Ritedose. We are also particularly excited to be at the vanguard of increasing vaccine availability through the use of blow-fill-seal injectable technology."  

Jody Chastain, Chief Executive Officer of Ritedose, said: "We are excited and proud to be partnering with Novo Holdings. We believe that Novo Holdings' experience and track record in healthcare and their commitment to supporting scientific, humanitarian, and social causes aligns well with our mission and will help us to deliver on our growth aspirations. Our focus has always been on honouring patients and the people who care for them, and we look forward to continuing to do so with Novo Holdings' support."

Heiko von Dewitz, Partner and Managing Director of AGIC in Europe, said: "We are pleased to have accompanied and supported Ritedose through an extraordinary journey, and worked closely with management to keep expanding Ritedose's core business and develop new businesses that will fuel additional growth in the future. We believe Novo Holdings is a very good partner for Ritedose and that they will achieve great success together."

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2022. Goodwin Procter, LLP served as legal advisor to Novo Holdings. RBC Capital Markets, LLC served as financial advisor to Novo Holdings.

About Ritedose

Founded in 1995 in Columbia, South Carolina, The Ritedose Corporation is an industry leader in the aseptic manufacturing and liquid packaging of respiratory and ophthalmic products, utilizing proven blow-fill-seal ("BFS") technology to ensure efficient, consistent and safe dosage delivery. The company's 25-year track record includes the delivery of more than 8 billion doses since 2012 without a single recall, and its current capacity is over 2.0 billion units annually. In 2020, The Ritedose Corporation was selected as a subcontractor to ApiJect for the production of single-dose prefilled syringes intended for administering COVID-19 vaccines.

About Novo Holdings A/S

Novo Holdings A/S is a private limited liability company wholly owned by the Novo Nordisk Foundation. It is the holding company of the Novo Group, comprising Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S, and is responsible for managing the Novo Nordisk Foundation's assets.

Novo Holdings is recognized as a leading international life science investor, with a focus on creating long-term value. As a life science investor, Novo Holdings provides seed and venture capital to development-stage companies and takes significant ownership positions in growth and well-established companies. Novo Holdings also manages a broad portfolio of diversified financial assets. Further information: www.novoholdings.dk.

About the Novo Nordisk Foundation

The Novo Nordisk Foundation is an independent Danish foundation with corporate interests. It has two objectives: 1) to provide a stable basis for the commercial and research activities of the companies in the Novo Group; and 2) to support scientific, humanitarian and social causes.

The vision of the Foundation is to contribute significantly to research and development that improves the lives of people and the sustainability of society. Since 2010, the Foundation has donated more than DKK 30 billion (US$4.5 billion), primarily for research at public institutions and hospitals in Denmark and the other Nordic countries. Read more at www.novonordiskfonden.dk/en

About AGIC Capital

Founded in 2015, AGIC is a European-Asian fund focused on investments in advanced industrial and healthcare technology companies and has more than US$ 2.2 billion of assets under management. It targets buyout and growth-stage investment in small- and medium-sized companies and employs customized, hands-on approaches to guiding and supporting portfolio companies in developing and executing market penetration plans. AGIC has offices in Munich, London, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing. For more information, please go to www.agic-group.com

SOURCE Novo