Epistem, a Manchester-based contract research organisation, has received a £2m investment from Foresight Group to support its management buy-out from genedrive plc.
Dow Schofield Watts Transaction Services advised on the deal. The buy-out was led by Dr Catherine Booth, one of the original founders of Epistem and expert in epithelial stem cell biology, who will be supported by a strong executive team.
Epistem, which also has facilities in Baltimore, provides research services across several specialist therapeutic areas including oncology and inflammatory diseases. Its clients include global pharmaceutical businesses, US biodefence programmes and niche biotechnology companies.
Foresight’s investment includes growth capital to enable the company to expand its offering, invest in Next Generation Sequencing technologies and further development of organoid models, and strengthen its sales and marketing.
Matthew Pomroy, Investment Manager, Foresight, commented: “Epistem is a prime example of the type of company Foresight likes to support, a differentiated and customer-focused business with market leading expertise.”
Catriona Lang and Ros Jones of Dow Schofield Watts Transaction Services provided financial due diligence for Foresight on the transaction. Catriona also advised on a previous deal in May, when Foresight led a £4m investment round in Bedford-based Mologic, which provides contract research and manufacturing services