North Carolina CRO Clinipace has raised $4 million, and while the company isn't disclosing why it needs the cash, the move follows years of dealmaking and could be a prelude to another buyout.
As disclosed in a regulatory filing, Clinipace has completed a debt offering with an unspecified lender. The CRO is mum on its plans to spend the new money, but the timing is worth noting: On March 10, Clinipace raised $2.6 million in debt, and, a day later, announced its acquisition of Hong Kong CRO Choice Pharma.
The Choice buy was Clinipace's 5th acquisition in as many years, following deals for Paragon Biomedical, PFC Pharma, Regulus Pharmaceutical and Worldwide Clinical Research.
All of that M&A has vastly expanded Clinipace's capacity over the last few years, and the CRO now employs more than 640 people in 30 countries while maintaining its headquarters in Research Triangle Park, NC.
And with broader capabilities have come new partnerships. Earlier this year, Clinipace struck up a preferred-provider agreement with Karyopharm Therapeutics ($KPTI), signing up to assist in the development of the biotech's first-in-class therapies targeting cancer, wound healing and other major diseases. And, in April, the CRO signed a similar deal with Finnish device outfit Nexstim, which is developing a neurostimulation treatment for stroke and major depression.
- read the filing