KKR acquires minority stake in life sciences firm Catalio

Investment firm KKR will invest in Catalio Capital Management to advance its growth trajectory and talent acquisition activities.

No financial details have been disclosed, but subject to the agreement KKR is set to acquire a minority economic stake in Catalio, a multi-strategy investment firm focused on biomedical technology and healthcare companies. The investment aims to accelerate Catalio’s growth, acquisitions, and secure its investment strategies.

“KKR invested in Catalio because of its entrepreneurial management team and its impressive venture partner network comprised of more than 40 scientists,” Catalio and KKR spokespeople told BioProcess Insider.

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“The breadth of this network and depth of expertise presents a competitive edge for Catalio when engaging with company founders, LPs, and other constituents across the health care ecosystem. Furthermore, working with Catalio will help KKR gain a stronger foothold in the life sciences sector, which is highly complementary to KKR’s existing health care growth strategy.”

KKR said it will contribute capital to Catalio’s balance sheet in order to support core operations and expand its talent to position the company for continued development in the future. In addition, KKR will make anchor investments for Catalio’s current and prospective funds.

“From the KKR perspective, we are investing in Catalio in order to support expanding our presence in the life sciences sector. For Catalio, the goal is to accelerate life sciences innovation and spur value creation for our investors,” the spokespeople said.

Henry Kravis, co-executive chairman and co-founder of KKR, will take the position of chairman of a new board of advisors for Catalio who will be responsible for the growth of the business. Once the transaction is complete, Following the completion of the transaction, George Petrocheilos and Jacob Vogelstein will continue to own a controlling stake in Catalio, and the management and operation of the business will remain the same.

KKR investments

KKR has made a string of investments over the years in the life sciences sector and the spokespeople said it has invested “well over $1 billion in capital from our existing health care growth strategy. Going forward, KKR is considering other partnerships with life sciences investment firms and strategic corporates as it looks to expand its presence in the space.”

In January 2020, KKR launched Gamma Bioscience, a portfolio of life sciences tools subsidiaries. The first company to fall under the umbrella was Astrea Bioseparations, a ligand discovery and adsorbent development services firm, previously known as Prometic Bioseparations, acquired by KKR for around $100 million (€93 million) in November 2019.

In February 2020, KKR invested $54 million in Belgium-based biologics platform firm Univercells. Furthermore, KKR co-led a $299.2 million financing round for BridgeBio Pharma in January 2019.

Swedish separations firm Biotage announced in February it would buy Astrea for $190 million to extend its chromatography offering. And in July, Minneapolis-based filtration firm, Donaldson, bought Belgium-based Univercells, for $148 million.