P95, a leading vaccine-focused CRO, merges with South Africa-based CRO OnQ Research

News provided by

Oct 16, 2023, 09:00 ET

LEUVEN, Belgium and JOHANNESBURG, Oct. 16, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- P95 BV ("P95"), a portfolio company of Ampersand Capital Partners and leading provider of clinical and observational services to vaccine developers, has signed an agreement to merge OnQ Research ("OnQ") into P95. The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval and scheduled to close before year end, furthers P95's goal of becoming the leading global, vaccine-focused CRO. P95 now has unparalleled expertise conducting research in emerging geographies on the infectious diseases which could possibly drive a future pandemic. The combined company will also continue to offer clinical research services in disease areas beyond its vaccine focus (e.g. oncology, medical devices, cardiology).

Upon completion of the merger, the combined P95-OnQ will have a physical presence in over 30 countries with offices in Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Its services will cover both regulatory- grade real-world evidence and full-service interventional clinical trial research. Over the last 20+ years, the respective expertise of both organizations has been applied at the cutting edge of vaccine research for both bacterial and viral diseases including Influenza, Covid-19, Group B Strep, RSV, Hepatitis variants, and E Coli.

"This is an exciting transaction for our respective teams and clients, and an important step towards our goal of being the preferred service provider to all vaccine stakeholders," said Thomas Verstraeten, CEO of P95. "The enhanced geographic footprint of the combined company will accelerate recruitment timelines, while providing our sponsor partners access to a global, diverse patient base. Further, the expansion into Africa for P95's ongoing real world evidence projects provides a pathway to generate unique insights for both R&D prioritization and the monitoring of public health decision effectiveness."

Catherine Lund, CEO of OnQ, said "We have grown exponentially in recent years and have proudly built a company whose quality standards are on par with those seen at North American and European CROs. Africa has enormous potential to contribute to global infectious disease research, and we believe merging with P95 will help accelerate the continent's impact on the field. Together we will implement state-of-the-art clinical trial infrastructure and help establish the combined P95-OnQ as the unrivaled African champion in infectious disease clinical research services. Additionally, we see strong cultural alignment between the two companies to pursue sustainable economic empowerment which addresses the socioeconomic disparities present in the regions in which we operate."

Benoit Bouche, Chairman of the Board at P95 and an Operating Partner at Ampersand Capital Partners, added, "I am proud to support a company with such high potential for positive contribution to the global struggle against infectious disease. We will pursue our mission with the ultimate goal of improving global access to effective vaccines."

About P95

P95 is a global company headquartered in Leuven (Belgium) and with local and regional offices located in Rotterdam (the Netherlands), Bogota (Colombia) and Bangkok (Thailand). P95 delivers cutting-edge expertise in epidemiology and pharmacovigilance. The P95 team is comprised of epidemiologists, pharmacovigilance specialists, biostatisticians, data scientists, medical writers, IT engineers and study managers, located in over 17 countries. P95 projects are largely focused on a broad range of infectious diseases and vaccines, and the company also offers customized services upon request. Additional information about P95 is available at www.p-95.com.

About OnQ Research

OnQ Research, founded and led by Catherine Lund since 1999, has developed into a South Africa-based specialist in executing patient-centric vaccine clinical trials across the African continent. The Company operates as a full-service clinical CRO and has conducted more than 500 trials in 14 African countries. OnQ Research provides innovative, cost effective, and practical clinical trial execution services from project conception to clinical study report. For additional information, visit www.onqsa.co.za.

About Ampersand Capital Partners

Founded in 1988, Ampersand is a middle market private equity firm with $3 billion of assets under management dedicated to growth-oriented investments in the healthcare sector. With offices in Boston, MA and Amsterdam, Netherlands, Ampersand leverages a unique blend of private equity and operating experience to build value and drive long-term performance alongside its portfolio company management teams. Ampersand has helped build numerous market-leading companies across each of the firm's core healthcare sectors. For additional information, visit www.ampersandcapital.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

SOURCE P95 BV