GTCR Acquires Vector Laboratories
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GTCR Acquires Vector Laboratories

vector nf1Maravai Life Sciences, a platform company of GTCR, has acquired Vector Laboratories, a provider of life sciences products. Maravai was formed in March 2014 by GTCR in partnership with Carl Hull and Eric Tardiff to acquire companies in the in-vitro diagnostics and life sciences industry.

“The investment in Vector is a great first step and provides us with an excellent platform to build upon,” said Carl Hull. “Vector is an excellent organization with a talented and dedicated team and we look forward to working with and investing in the organization and its employees.”

vector nf33Vector’s products include labeling and detection reagents that help medical and scientific researchers visualize cells in experiments which are central to the understanding of cancer and other diseases. The company’s products are sold both directly and through a network of independent distributors. Vector was founded in 1976 and operates a 65,000 sq. ft. research and development facility south of San Francisco in Burlingame, CA (headquarters) and has additional facilities in the UK and Canada (www.vectorlabs.com).

ben daverman nf1“In addition to growth initiatives within the company, we believe there will be a number of compelling investment opportunities to acquire other complementary companies and products that serve a similar customer base,” said Ben Daverman, Principal at GTCR. “This multi-billion dollar addressable market opportunity includes products that enable adjacent scientific research workflows and diagnostic applications, which Maravai will look to serve through future acquisitions.”

Mr. Hull is a thirty-year veteran of the diagnostic and life sciences industry. Prior to partnering with GTCR, Mr. Hull was Chief Executive Officer of Gen-Probe, a molecular diagnostic company which was sold in 2012 to Hologic for $3.7 billion. Prior to his time at Gen-Probe, he held a number of executive roles at various diagnostics and life sciences companies, including Applied Biosystems, Ventana Medical Systems and Abbott Laboratories.

Eric Tardif joined Mr. Hull at Gen-Probe as Senior Vice President after spending over a decade covering life sciences clients at Morgan Stanley and other firms. At Gen-Probe, Mr. Tardif was responsible for establishing corporate strategy, evaluating and executing all mergers and acquisitions, including Gen-Probe’s sale to Hologic.

GTCR pioneered the investment strategy of identifying and partnering with executives to acquire and build companies through a combination of acquisitions and internal growth. The firm currently has nearly $11 billion in assets under management. Since its inception in 1980, GTCR has invested more than $12 billion in over 200 companies. The firm is based in Chicago (www.gtcr.com).

dean mihas nf1The acquisition of Vector was funded from GTCR Fund XI, a private equity fund raised in 2014 with $3.8 billion of capital commitments. “Vector is an exciting starting point from which Maravai intends to build a market leading business in the diagnostics and life sciences industry,” said GTCR Managing Director Dean Mihas. “Carl and Eric’s expertise, strategic vision and operational abilities make them ideal partners as GTCR invests in this dynamic and growing segment of healthcare.”

BroadOak Partners, an investment bank which specializes in the life sciences industry, served as financial advisor to GTCR. BroadOak has offices in Bethesda and San Francisco (www.broadoak.com).

Kirkland & Ellis (www.kirkland.com) provided legal counsel and PricewaterhouseCoopers (www.pwc.com) served as accounting advisor to GTCR.

© 2016 Private Equity Professional • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 4-8-16

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