International law firm Reed Smith has advised specialty pharmaceutical company, EUSA Pharma Inc. on its acquisition of the French biopharmaceutical company, OPi SA. OPi develops and markets worldwide a range of specialty pharma drugs aimed at treating patients suffering from rare and severe diseases. The combination of both companies further enhances both the European and North American aspects of EUSA’s transatlantic business.
In addition, Reed Smith advised EUSA Pharma on its US$175 million second closing of a series B round led by Essex Woodlands and 3i. Additional investors included Goldman Sachs; Advent; NeoMed; NovaQuest; and Schroders. The funding will be used to finance the acquisition and for on going working capital.
Reed Smith has acted for EUSA Pharma since it was set up by Bryan Morton in 2006 with John Wilkinson providing strategic advice and advising on EUSA Pharma’s acquisition of Talisker in July 2006. The transaction structure for the OPi acquisition was complex involving detailed provisions regarding the conversion and purchase of various warrants issued by OPi and co-ordinating the issues raised by French law with the interests of the US and English investors. The acquisition required the Reed Smith team to meet challenging deadlines to ensure that EUSA Pharma met the tight deadlines set by the sellers while at the same time working on the funding for the transaction.
The project demonstrated the international capability of Reed Smith with a team of lawyers in London, Paris and the US worked in conjunction with EUSA Pharma’s Legal Counsel and Company Secretary, Zoë Evans. Partner, Nicola Maguire, led the team. John Wilkinson worked closely on the deal and assistance was provided in London by George Pickering and in Paris by Gerard Sicsic and Alban Schaal. In the US the team working on the funding included Vince Capone and Michael Sanders.
Commenting on the deal, John Wilkinson, Co-head of Reed Smith’s International Transactional Life Sciences Practice said: “This transaction demonstrates Reed Smith’s great strength – our ability to field a team of lawyers on both sides of the Atlantic in London, Paris and the US experienced at working in the Life Sciences sector. This was critical to ensure that the tight deadlines for the acquisition and associated funding were met.”
Bryan Morton, Chief Executive of EUSA Pharma added “We are delighted to work with Reed Smith again on the acquisition of OPi which is a significant transaction for our company. The Reed Smith team on both sides of the Atlantic worked seamlessly with Zoë Evans, our in-house counsel, ensuring that the aggressive timescales fixed by the sellers were met and our funding in place on time.”
For further information please contact:
Beth Farrer, Spada 020 7269 1430
Joanna Tudor, Spada 020 7269 1430
About Reed Smith Richards Butler
Reed Smith Richards Butler is one of the 15 largest law firms worldwide, with more than 1500 lawyers in 21 offices throughout the United States, Europe and the Middle East.
Founded in 1877, the firm represents leading international businesses from Fortune 100 corporations to mid-market and emerging enterprises. Its lawyers provide litigation services in multi-jurisdictional matters and other high stake disputes, deliver regulatory counsel, and execute the full range of strategic domestic and cross-border transactions.
Reed Smith Richards Butler is a preeminent advisor to industries including financial services, life sciences, health care, advertising, media and technology, shipping, international trade and commodities and real estate.
Reed Smith Richards Butler prides itself as a workplace where diversity is embraced as a core value. The firm is ranked in the top 50 firms on the Minority Law Journal’s Diversity Scorecard, representing an overall jump of 109 places since 2003. Diversity-minded client Sara Lee Corporation elevated Reed Smith to Preferred Partner status, whilst the Hispanic National Bar Association selected the firm as its “Law Firm of the Year” in 2006. The firm’s reputation was further reinforced at last year’s 2006 ‘The Lawyer awards’ where we were shortlisted for our work in diversity, alongside several other major transatlantic firms. The firm was awarded second place in the US firm of the year category and Thomas Ince was named UK associate of the year, his work pro bono work for the Royal Society for the Blind being particularly recognised.
For further information visit: www.reedsmith.com
About EUSA Pharma Inc.
EUSA Pharma Inc is a transatlantic specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing and marketing innovative products for the worldwide hospital market. The company was formally launched with the acquisition of OPi SA, in March 2007. EUSA Pharma aims to create a $1 billion company by building a portfolio of products in the fields of oncology, pain and critical care, and to create a balanced company in the EU and USA. It will seek to in-licence, develop and market late-stage compounds. The Company has an active partnering approach to take advantage of the opportunities presented by its outstanding infrastructure. In addition, EUSA Pharma will seek to licence out portfolio products not in its core therapeutic areas such as its early-stage CNS products and to partner or out-licence its fully human IL-6 mAb in inflammatory diseases. The combined company has four products in the market plus three products in clinical development and three products in preclinical development. EUSA Pharma’s management team has a proven track record of marketing within global pharmaceutical companies and an entrepreneurial edge in the creation of new pharmaceutical businesses.
About OPi SA, Pharmaceuticals for Rare Diseases
OPi is an integrated biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to develop and market pharmaceuticals aimed at treating patients suffering from rare and severe diseases. OPi’s primary focus is onco-haematology, with Kidrolase® (Escherichia coli-derived L- sparaginase), and Erwinase® (Erwinia chrysanthemi-derived L-asparaginase), and with a R&D portfolio of monoclonal antibodies at various stages of preclinical and clinical development. OPi is also active in other therapeutic areas, with commercialised hospital products targeting rare and severe diseases in neurology and clinical toxicology. With 4 drugs approved, OPi markets its products through its wholly-owned subsidiaries (the UK, Germany, Canada), through a network of agents and distributors in 50 other countries. Innovation and medical needs are the mainstays of OPi’s approach.