#AbuDhabi Consolidates Pharma Assets to Form Life Sciences Firm - Bloomberg

Abu Dhabi Consolidates Pharma Assets to Form Life Sciences Firm - Bloomberg

Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ is consolidating some of its pharmaceutical assets to create one of the region’s largest life sciences firms, with operations across four continents.

The new entity will include Egypt’s Amoun Pharmaceutical Co., Switzerland’s Acino International and Turkey’s Birgi Mefar Group. Arcera, as the holding company will be called, will have a combined workforce of more than 6,500 people across 90 countries.

Arcera aims to double its revenue over the next five years through acquisitions and partnerships, ADQ said in a statement. The firm currently offers 2,000 branded medicines, and has manufacturing and packaging sites in the United Arab Emirates, Switzerland, Ukraine, Estonia, South Africa, Turkey and Egypt.

Bloomberg has previously reported that ADQ was considering such a move and ultimately plans to list the new entity. That would mirror the creation of PureHealth — the largest health-care provider in the UAE, which was also formed through the consolidation of several companies. The firm went public in a $1 billion listing and surged 84% on debut in December.

With an estimated $200 billion in assets, ADQ is Abu Dhabi’s third-largest sovereign wealth fund behind the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Mubadala Investment Co.

Neighboring Saudi Arabia has also made inroads into the pharma sector. The Public Investment Fund last year created a new entity to attract pharmaceutical and biotech companies to invest in drug manufacturing.