Orbimed Advisors makes first India investment in clinical research company

A subsidiary of Indian financial and industrial conglomerate Manipal, Ecron Acunova conducts clinical trials for pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device companies in Europe, Asia and the US through its offices in Frankfurt, Bangalore and Princeton.

“We are very excited about the investment in Ecron Acunova. The company is uniquely positioned with talented scientists, excellent network and a broad service portfolio,” said Dr Sunny Sharma, senior managing director of OrbiMed Advisors India.

Sharma has joined the Ecron Acunova board of directors, and has more than ten years of life sciences experience spanning venture capital, investment banking and clinical practice.

D A Prasanna, founder and CEO of Ecron Acunova, said, “We have built a solid reputation as a CRO in Europe and India. We are expanding our geographic offering and strengthening our depth and scale in functional outsourcing.”

OrbiMed is the world's largest healthcare-focused private equity investor, with approximately $5bn in assets under management, channelled through a series of venture capital and private equity funds. The firm recently took part in a $45m funding round for third-generation human genome sequencing company Complete Genomics.

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