CRO

Venn snags an Irish CRO in its global buyout push

European CRO Venn Life Sciences is back at the buyer's table, picking up Ireland's Medevol in a deal worth about $1.1 million.

Venn traded about $114,000 up front for Medevol with another $982,000 tied to performance milestones over the next two years. Medevol expects to haul in revenue of about $1 million this year, roughly 7 times what it made in 2012 thanks to a new partnership with a major pharma outfit. Venn cut the ribbon on its first U.K. office earlier this year, and Medevol's suite of Phase II-IV services dovetail with its existing operations, the company said.

For Venn, the deal follows its October buyout of Germany's CRM Clinical Trials, and the CRO is betting its cross-continental acquisitions will make it the partner of choice for European trials, CEO Tony Richardson said.

"Medevol is the right fit for Venn as we continue to expand our business across Europe and increase our project pipeline," Richardson said in a statement. "Venn, Medevol and the CRM business have a shared global pharmaceutical client, and this acquisition affords us the opportunity to develop that relationship as a key strategic account for the group going forward."

Venn now operates in France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Russia, the U.K. and Switzerland, and the company said it's hardly done expanding, keeping its eye out for more deals down the road.

- read the statement