Astorg to acquire Solabia, a leading biotech ingredient solutions provider
Astorg, a leading pan-European private equity firm, is pleased to announce that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in Solabia Group (“Solabia” or “the Company”), a global biotechnology ingredient solutions provider, from TA Associates (“TA”), a leading global private equity firm, who will reinvest in the business.
Astorg will partner with TA to support Solabia in executing its growth plan, focused on international expansion and product innovation, through a combination of organic initiatives and targeted M&A.
Founded in 1972, Solabia specializes in natural active ingredients for the cosmetics, nutraceutical, pharmaceutical, as well as food and clinical testing industries. Leveraging advanced biotechnology capabilities - including fermentation, enzymatic synthesis, plant extraction, and green chemistry - Solabia develops high-performance ingredients that support precise formulation needs and enable differentiated product outcomes for its customers.
The Company holds leading positions across its market segments, driven by technological differentiation. Solabia’s active ingredients play a critical role in its customer formulations and end-products quality, contributing to high customer retention and long-term supplier integration. Solabia is positioned in dynamic and resilient end-markets and benefits from the continued penetration of natural ingredients in substitution to synthetic compounds.
Headquartered in Paris, Solabia operates 11 manufacturing sites and 8 R&D labs worldwide and employs over 900 staff. It is one of the few independent natural active ingredients platforms at scale combining deep technological expertise with strong global distribution capabilities.
Building on Solabia’s strong track record, marked by double-digit growth in the past five years, Astorg, TA and Solabia’s management team will focus on further accelerating international expansion – particularly in the US and Asia – and advancing the Company’s innovation roadmap, while continuing to benefit from strong market tailwinds.
Jean-Baptiste Dellon, President & Chief Executive Officer, Solabia, said:
“We are excited to welcome Astorg as a strategic partner and to continue our successful collaboration with TA. Astorg brings a unique combination of deep sector expertise, a strong track record of value creation, and an entrepreneurial mindset that aligns closely with Solabia’s values and ambitions. Their support will be instrumental as we accelerate innovation, expand our global footprint, and continue delivering high-performance, science-based solutions to our customers around the world.”
Nicolas Marien, Partner, Astorg and Paul Arhanchiague, Managing Director, Astorg added:
“With its unique position in a structurally growing market - driven by rising global demand for natural active ingredient solutions - deep biotech expertise, and a strong track record of sustained growth, Solabia exemplifies the type of international B2B leader that Astorg is proud to support. We look forward to partnering with Jean-Baptiste and the Solabia team to build upon this solid foundation and drive the next phase of growth through a targeted value creation plan.”
Patrick Sader, Managing Director, TA, and Jérémy Dréan, Director, TA, said:
“Since our initial investment in 2018, it has been a privilege to support Solabia’s transformation into a leading vertically integrated natural and biotech life sciences and health platform. Under the leadership of Jean- Baptiste Dellon and his team, Solabia has scaled, achieving strong organic and external growth. We remain confident in the company’s strategic vision and long-term growth potential, and are thrilled to be part of its continued journey alongside Astorg.”
The transaction was made via Astorg VIII and represents the funds’ ninth investment to date.
The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the coming months. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Astorg was advised by Evercore and Wil Partners (Financial advisors), and Weil Gotshal & Manges (Legal advisor). Solabia management was advised by Sycomore (Financial advisor) and Jeausserand-Audouard (Legal & Tax advisors). TA was advised by BofA Securities (Financial advisor) and Latham & Watkins (Legal advisor).
*ENDS*
Astorg
Astorg is a leading pan-European private equity firm with over €23 billion of assets under management. Astorg works with entrepreneurs and management teams to acquire market leading global companies headquartered in Europe or the US, providing them with the strategic guidance, governance and capital they need to achieve their growth goals. Enjoying a distinct entrepreneurial culture, a long-term shareholder perspective and a lean decision-making body, Astorg has valuable industry expertise in healthcare, software and technology, business services and technology-based industrial companies.
Headquartered in Luxembourg, Astorg has offices in London, Paris, New York, Frankfurt, and Milan.
For more information about Astorg: www.astorg.com | Follow Astorg on LinkedIn.
TA
TA is a leading global private equity firm focused on scaling growth in profitable companies. Since 1968, TA has invested in more than 560 companies across its five target industries – technology, healthcare, financial services, consumer and business services. Leveraging its deep industry expertise and strategic resources, TA collaborates with management teams worldwide to help high-quality companies deliver lasting value. The firm has raised $65 billion in capital to date and has over 150 investment professionals across offices in Boston, Menlo Park, Austin, London, Mumbai and Hong Kong. For more information, visit: www.ta.com.
Solabia
Solabia is a vertically integrated manufacturer of natural active and functional ingredients for cosmetics, nutraceutical, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. Solabia is also a producer of culture media and detection kits for food testing, clinical, pharmaceutical and microbiology laboratories. With multiple production facilities and R&D centres, Solabia is a major player in the global cosmetics, nutraceutical and pharmaceutical ingredient markets, as well as food and clinical testing industries.
More information can be found at: https://www.solabia.com/en
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