Kyowa inks buyout deal for ProStrakan

By Alexandria Pesic

- Last updated on GMT

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Japanese drugmaker, Kyowa Hakko Kirin, has further expanded its presence in foreign markets after agreeing a deal to buy Scottish drug firm, ProStrakan.

The $474.6m (€346.1m) acquisition of the Galashiels-based firm provides Kyowa with an established European and US sales platform and marks the end of a five-month takeover tussle which saw ProStrakan reject what it referred to as an “inadequate” ​offer from Dutch specialty group, Norgine, last November.

The fit between ProStrakan and Kyowa is unmistakable in terms of products, geography and infrastructure​”,​said Peter Allen, chairman and acting CEO of ProStrakan. “We believe that the price being offered by Kyowa fully values ProStrakan's ongoing growth prospects.​”

Key milestone

Kyowa believes the acquisition of ProStrakan represents a key development milestone, allowing it to benefit from the Scottish company's portfolio of proprietary products, regulatory expertise in the US and Europe, and its established track record of drug approval.

Yuzuru Matsuda, president and CEO of Kyowa, said the deal was a highly attractive prospect for the Japanese firm, referring to it as a “strategically complementary fit​”.

“We look forward to working with ProStrakan's highly skilled team to contribute to worldwide human health and well-being through innovative drug discovery and global commercialisation​”,​he said.

Setbacks

The deal follows a difficult 2010 for ProStrakan. A major setback in September relating to delayed US approval of cancer drug, Abstral (fentanyl), saw the company's share price drop to an all-time low and prompted the resignation of its former chief executive.

In addition, a problem last year with the manufacture of ProStrakan's anti-nausea patch, Sancuso, further increased financial pressure on the firm, with the spectre of substantial debt repayments looming large.

Analysts at independent stockbrokers, Singer Capital Markets, said the price agreed by Kyowa for ProStrakan represented a “cut price deal,” ​but claimed that with both Abstral and testosterone drug, Fortesta, now approved by US regulators, ProStrakan enters 2011 in a strong position.

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