Reaction Biology Corporation (www.reactionbiology.com) ("RBC") and ChinaEquity Group (www.chinaequity.net) announced today the completion of a stock swap transaction whereby RBC has acquired all the shares of ProQinase GmbH, an early stage drug-discovery company based in Freiburg, Germany.
Founded in 2001, ProQinase specializes in kinase-based drug discovery, and in 2018 provided a full suite of biochemical and cell-based assays to over 230 customers worldwide. In addition, ProQinase has a large and growing offering of in vivo assay services, including 70 tumor models as well as immuno-oncology platforms with proprietary mouse models. In 2019, ProQinase will be moving into a newly constructed state-of-the art lab facility from which to grow further.
RBC is a leader in early stage drug-discovery services, with a heavy focus on kinase and epigenetic drug targets for both biochemical and cell-based assays. In recent years, RBC has also added biophysical and electrophysical assay platforms to its service offering mix, and has served over 1,150 customers worldwide, including large pharmaceutical companies, biotechs, and academic and government labs.
The combination of RBC and ProQinase will create the world's leading kinase drug discovery company, with a diverse offering and operations in Europe and the United States. The combined companies plan to continue expanding operations in both facilities and adding to their product offerings. In addition, RBC plans to open a China-based subsidiary in collaboration with its significant new shareholder, CEG.
"We took this opportunity to enhance and grow our global position as an early stage drug-discovery leader," said Matt Oristano, CEO of Reaction Biology. "Our combined firm now has a customer list approaching 1,500, and we now offer a more diverse group of service options for each customer. Our ability to stage drug discovery efforts from Europe, the US, and China will be a great benefit to our customers."
Mr. Chaoyong Wang, Founder and CEO of ChinaEquity Group, said, "We are extremely pleased to help create this multinational platform for drug-discovery services. ChinaEquity has maintained a heavy focus on life science companies in our portfolio of more than 200 company holdings, and putting our ProQinase assets together with RBC means we can build strategic value as we enter the China drug-discovery services market. We greatly look forward to working with Matt and his team in opening up the China market to them."
About ChinaEquity Group:
Founded in 1999, ChinaEquity Group was one of the earliest PE/VC firms in China. Currently ranked as one of the top firms in the Chinese investment industry by many professional rankings. CEG's RMB business is currently publicly traded on Chinese NEEQ Market and CEG acquired Hifuture Electric (a Shenzhen Stock Exchange listed company) in 2016.
Over the course of its 20-year history, CEG has led over two hundred investments that span a wide range of industries and development stages. The firm's investment in companies during the VC and PE stage covers TMT, high-end consumer & retail, high-end manufacturing, clean-tech, new materials, health care and bio-tech industries. www.chinaequity.net
About Reaction Biology:
Based in Malvern, Pennsylvania and formed in 2001, Reaction Biology is a leader in early stage drug-discovery services, with over 1,150 clients worldwide and a suite of 2000+ biochemical, cell-based, and biophysical assays. The company is the leading provider of kinase-based discovery services, with 650 kinases covered in the industry's largest offering of its kind. www.reactionbiology.com
