Gryphon Investors Exits SynteractHCR Investment

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Gryphon Investors (“Gryphon”), a San Francisco-based private equity firm, announced today that it has completed the sale of its portfolio company SynteractHCR Holdings Corporation (“SynteractHCR”) to Amulet Capital Partners, LP (“Amulet”). SynteractHCR is a leading contract research organization (CRO) focused on Phase I-IV clinical trials for emerging to mid-sized biopharma clients in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

“We are grateful to Gryphon for their support in furthering the growth of the company. Their support provided the strategic guidance and resources that enabled SynteractHCR to grow from a small west coast CRO to a top 20 global CRO providing clinical trial services to small-to-mid-size Biopharmaceutical companies.”

SynteractHCR was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Carlsbad, California. Since its investment in September 2008, Gryphon has supported the growth of the company into a top 20 global full-service CRO with over 800 staff members across 21 countries. SynteractHCR has a reputation for clinical excellence in complex trials in a broad range of therapeutic areas, contributing to more than 230 product approvals since its founding. The company has run over 3,500 projects including more than 700,000 patients in 60+ countries.

Gryphon Partner and Business Services Group head Alex Earls noted, “We greatly enjoyed working with management to build SynteractHCR into a global leader and wish them all the best as they continue growing the company in partnership with Amulet.”

SynteractHCR CEO Wendel Barr added, “We are grateful to Gryphon for their support in furthering the growth of the company. Their support provided the strategic guidance and resources that enabled SynteractHCR to grow from a small west coast CRO to a top 20 global CRO providing clinical trial services to small-to-mid-size Biopharmaceutical companies.”

In connection with the transaction, Wells Fargo Securities acted as lead financial advisor and Raymond James & Associates acted as financial advisor to SynteractHCR and Gryphon Investors. Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as company counsel on the transaction.

About Gryphon Investors

Based in San Francisco, Gryphon Investors (www.gryphoninvestors.com) is a leading private equity firm focused on profitably growing and competitively enhancing middle-market companies in partnership with experienced management. For numerous consecutive quarters and years, Gryphon has been ranked in Preqin’s prestigious quarterly PE report as one of North America’s top-decile firms based on consistency of strong investment returns. With approximately $2 billion of cumulative equity commitments, the firm has an extensive track record of leading equity investments of $35 million to $150 million per portfolio company with sales ranging from approximately $50 million to $500 million. Gryphon prioritizes investment opportunities where it can form proactive partnerships with owners and executives to build leading companies, utilizing Gryphon’s capital, specialized professional resources, and operational expertise.

About SynteractHCR

SynteractHCR is a full-service international contract research organization (CRO) with a successful two-decade track record supporting biotechnology, medical device and pharmaceutical companies in all phases of clinical development. SynteractHCR has conducted Phase I-IV studies on six continents and 60 countries, offering expertise across multiple therapeutic areas, with notable depth in oncology, immunotherapy, CNS, infectious disease, endocrinology, cardiovascular and respiratory, among other indications. With its “Shared Work – Shared Vision” philosophy, SynteractHCR provides customized services collaboratively and cost effectively, ensuring on-time delivery of quality data to help bring tomorrow’s treatments to patients.