After a year marked by the appointment of Xavier Duburcq as new CEO and the acquisition of pharmacovigilance specialist, AxPharma, PLG is gaining momentum with the acquisition of DSI, which will enable PLG to strengthen its foothold in the United States while further expanding its range of expertise.

Founded in 2007, DSI offers a full range of regulatory consulting services to support biotech companies in the development of pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical products. With its multidisciplinary teams of more than 50 regulatory and quality experts, DSI is a key partner for biotechs aiming at bringing innovative drugs to market.

This acquisition is a further step in PLG's development, always with the aim of providing the best possible support to its clients. It is a concrete expression of two key ambitions, namely to:

• Intensify its geographical coverage: PLG already operates in more than 100 countries and will now have a more significant presence in the United States with a strongly involved local management team;
• Expand its range of expertise: this combination will enable the group to strengthen its pre-marketing expertise while benefiting from a solid base to develop its post-marketing activity.

This merger is perfectly in line with PLG's transformation plan based on strong organic growth, coupled with a strategy of targeted acquisitions. Further acquisitions are being considered, particularly in relation to the group's innovation and right-shoring capabilities, while the optimization of its geographical coverage remains a priority.

The transaction, which closed on 23 April 2021, was financed through the external growth line set up by Zencap Asset Management at the end of 2020.

Xavier Duburcq, CEO of ProductLife Group says: “I have been very impressed by DSI and their mastery of a complex and constantly changing regulatory environment. We will build on this experience to support our clients in their global projects, both in accelerating their approval process and in implementing their development strategies. PLG and DSI together will be able to support clients at all stages of the product life cycle, from pre-clinical work to post-approval compliance. We are very excited about this partnership.”

Edward Narke and Anthony Durning, co-founders of DS InPharmatics, and Brian Lihou, now Managing Director of DSI, comment: “We are delighted to be joining one of the world's leading regulatory and compliance firms for the life sciences sector. Joining PLG is an opportunity for both DSI as a company and for our clients who will now have access to additional expertise and international coverage.”

Fabrice Voituron, Managing Partner at 21 Invest France adds: “We partnered with ProductLife Group in 2019 with the ambition of supporting the creation of a global reference expert for the regulatory and pharmacovigilance professions. In this context, access to the United States, the world's largest market, was an absolute priority. Other acquisitions are to come because the momentum is extraordinary with a very buoyant market, numerous opportunities and a group, led by Xavier Duburcq, which is taking on a whole new dimension.”