ABDİ İBRAHİM ACQUIRES 28.5 PERCENT STAKE IN SWISS BIOTECH FIRM OM PHARMA, BECOMES THE FIRST TURKISH PHARMA COMPANY TO TAKE PART IN THE MANAGEMENT OF A EUROPEAN COUNTERPART

OMPharma Press Release

Abdi İbrahim, operating in the pharmaceuticals industry for the last 108 years, and the consecutive market leader in the last 18, took part in a Swiss joint venture that acquired OM Pharma, a 83-year pharma company based in Switzerland, one of the leading countries in Pharmaceutical Industry. The acquisition made Abdi İbrahim first and only Turkish  pharma company to form a strategic partnership with a European counterpart.

Abdi İbrahim joined a Swiss joint venture that acquired OM Pharma, a leading pharma company from Switzerland that develops respiratory and urinary tract medications. After the acquisition, which carried a price tag of 500 million Swiss francs (approximately TRY 4.2 billion), Abdi İbrahim now owns 28.5 percent stake in OM Pharma. Founded in 1937 and based in Geneva, OM Pharma develops biotech drugs for an extensive market of 65 countries from Europe to Latin America and China to Russia.

With this partnership, Nezih Barut, Chairman of Abdi İbrahim, will take a seat on the Board of Directors of OM Pharma while Abdi İbrahim assumes full production responsibility for certain chemical-based drugs in the OM Pharma’s portfolio as the new strategic partner of the company. The partnership was finalized on September 18, 2020, and OM Pharma is looking to divert 250 million Swiss francs (approximately TRY 2.1 billion) towards the R&D and clinical trials for biotech drugs.

Abdi İbrahim Chairman Nezih Barut, disclosing the news at the same time as the Swiss press, expressed Abdi İbrahim’s commitment to maintain its domestic and national character as it sought to increase its international sphere of influence since its establishment. Nezih Barut noted that the partnership agreement was the first of its kind for the Turkish pharma industry. “The pandemic has highlighted the importance of a domestic pharmaceutical industry,” said Barut. “As the market leader in Turkey for the last 18 years, we have always kept our aspirations high. We have become the first Turkish enterprise to be ranked among the global top 100 pharma companies. We established one of the most advanced pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities in Turkey and Europe. We assumed a leading position in biotechnology in Turkey with AbdiBio. We opened production facilities in Kazakhstan and Algeria. We invested in a start-up in the US to research new molecules. We always kept an eye open for acquisition opportunities in Europe and the US, which we saw as a leadership opportunity for our country’s pharmaceutical industry. With this partnership agreement, the long trend of Turkish companies being acquired by foreign enterprises is reversed for the first time as we become a partner in a well-established biotech company based in Switzerland, a hub of global pharmaceutical industry and home to several pharma giants. I believe this venture will boost morale and add motivation to the Turkish pharma industry in a time of concern and uncertainty brought about by the pandemic. This partnership is a testament to the courage, passion and responsibility that has guided Abdi İbrahim for generations.”

“We are proud to realize a dream for our country and industry”

As a member of a family who has been serving the Turkish pharmaceutical industry for three generations, Nezih Barut expressed his pride in making a dream come true not only for Abdi İbrahim but for his country and industry at large, and noted that the commercial relations between Abdi İbrahim and OM Pharma dated back to 1996. “Turkish industry, with its competent human resource, production experience and entrepreneurial capacity, has the potential to make a difference in the world, not only in pharmaceuticals, but across all fields,” Barut commented. “This partnership was made possible by our long-lasting relations of trust with global players, the excellence of our world-class production facilities, competent human resources, R&D investments, innovative vision, and our determination to maintain our growth in the pharma industry.”

“We will have easier access to new markets such as China and the US”

Sharing the news that Abdi İbrahim is looking forward to develop several new projects in synergy with OM Pharma, Nezih Barut also explained his company’s plans to manufacture certain chemical-based drugs in the OM Pharma’s portfolio in its Esenyurt production facility for the global market. Exports will enable Abdi İbrahim to access markets where the company does not have a presence at the time being, Barut said. “The partnership, and especially our biotech products, will facilitate our access to new markets, particularly with Latin America, China and the US. Likewise, OM Pharma will now have an easier access to the Middle East and North Africa, where we enjoy a significant presence. Furthermore, our bolstered position as a global enterprise will lead to new career opportunities for our competent human resource, while also allowing Turkey to benefit from this synergy and close the gap in biotechnological expertise and know-how.”

“We allocated 250 million Swiss francs to the development of biotech drugs”

Nezih Barut singled out biotechnology as one of the key motivators for Abdi İbrahim to enter the partnership. “We have claimed time and time again that biotechnology would be the main driver of pharmaceuticals, and calling for our country to get on this ship before it sails,” said Barut. “We stood by our words when we launched AbdiBio, our biotech pharmaceutical manufacturing center. In the coming period, we are looking to allocate a significant R&D budget of 250 million Swiss francs (approximately TRY 2.1 billion) in OM Pharma, which will be used in the development of biotech drugs and clinical trials. This is an exciting development for us that will also support our strategy to fuel our growth and enhance our company’s value.”