Cryoport buys French biostorage and logistics specialist
The US company, a provider of cold chain logistics solutions for biopharmaceutical companies, and other sectors, said the deal is valued at €6.2m (US$6.69m), comprising an upfront payment of €3.6m in the form of cash and Cryoport common stock, plus a potential earn-out of €2.5m based on achieving certain financial targets.
Headquartered in Clermont-Ferrand, France, Cell&Co was founded in 2012. A business providing biorepository, kitting, and logistics services to the life sciences industry, it recorded revenue of roughly €2.6m in 2021. The French company supports customers’ work in the fields of R&D, quality control, clinical trials, and bioproduction.
Jerrell Shelton, CEO of Cryoport, said Cell&Co will play a significant role in Cryoport Systems’ development of its global supply chain network. “Cell&Co’s competencies combined with its location in the center of France makes it an excellent strategic fit for Cryoport Systems.”
Cell&Co will also provide Cryoport Systems with an EU site for importation services for non-EU clients, continued the CEO, which will “add significant value for our clients and create additional opportunities for US based regenerative medicine developers looking to conduct clinical trials or commercially distribute cell and gene therapies in EMEA.”
EU presence
Having a more significant presence in the EU is a priority for Cryoport.
January 2022 saw it enter into a partnership with specialized Belgian CDMO, Cell Matters, to deliver end-to-end cryopreservation services for leukapheresis derived therapies supporting both autologous and allogeneic cell therapies.
The alliance, said the partners back then, would look to solve the main challenge of cell therapy manufacturers: the timely supply of high-quality manufacturing-ready leukopaks.
In terms of what each company brings to the partnership, Mark Sawicki, CSO, Cryoport, told BioPharma-Reporter that the US player will support all packaging, storage and distribution for cell and gene therapy products, while Cell Matters will be focused on the cryoprocess optimization and cryopreservation of the therapies.
Commenting on the Belgian partnership at the start of the year, Shelton said: "The number of regenerative therapies continues, and will continue, to increase across the world. The strategic alliances we are forming, coupled with select acquisitions in services and products, are strengthening our comprehensive supply chain solutions for the life sciences and our capacity to serve the industry's evolving and growing needs."
As of December last year, Cryoport had supported eight commercial cell and gene therapies and 602 regenerative medicine clinical trials globally, with 74 of these trials in Phase 3.
