April 20 (SeeNews) - German pharmaceutical group Phoenix said on Friday it has signed an agreement to buy Romanian drugs wholesaler Farmexim and pharmacy chain Help Net Farma for an undisclosed sum.
The German group is expanding its geographical presence by entering the Romanian market, it said in a press release.
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The acquisition is subject to antitrust approval.
"The Romanian health care sector is developing dynamically. The acquisition paves our way to service this growth market which has been a white spot for us," PHOENIX Pharma SE CEO Oliver Windholz said.
Farmexim and Help Net are both sizeable players in pharmaceutical wholesale and retail business in Romania that are compatible with Phoenix’ approach to be an integrated health care provider, the CEO added.
“I am convinced that as a family owned business and a leading European healthcare provider, Phoenix will continue the success and the popularity of Farmexim and Help Net," Farmexim and Help Net majority shareholder Ovidiu Buluc said.
He stated that the current management of the two companies will continue to work side by side. "Transferring the business from family to family is of great importance because no one can understand the value of something built from scratch than someone who climbed that road," Buluc added.
Founded in 1990 by Ovidiu Buluc, Farmexim was the first private import and distribution company of pharmaceutical products in Romania. The Bucharest based pharmaceutical wholesaler employs around 800 people. In 2016, sales exceeded 400 million euro. ($492 million). The ten nationwide distribution centres supply approximately 3,900 customers – mainly pharmacies and hospitals.
Help Net Farma owns and operates the Help Net pharmacy chain. The retailer is among the top five pharmacy chains in Romania with a network of approximately 220 pharmacies across the country. The approximately 1,600 employees offer high quality patient services and reliable supply of medicines to more than 2.5 million customers.
Phoenix Group is present in 26 countries and supplies pharmacies, doctors, and medical institutions with drugs and health products from more than 152 distribution centres.
($= 0.8129 euro)