Pike picked to sit at Quintiles peak

Posted under Accenture, Blog, Chutes and Ladders, Companies, Diagnostics, Funding, Medical Devices, Medical Supply, outsourcing, Pharmaceuticals, Quintiles, Startups, Tom Pike, Universities, Videos by john

Tom Pike, a 22-year veteran at the management consulting firm Accenture, is taking the helm at biopharma services giant Quintiles. Founder Dennis Gillings is staying on as executive chairman. "Healthcare is the most important industry of the next quarter century, and I'm excited because Quintiles is right at the center of improving the health of millions of people around the world," said Pike. Release

Cetero execs look for a silver lining in bankruptcy sale

Posted under bankruptcy, Blog, Cetero Research, Companies, CRO, Diagnostics, Ed Silverman, Funding, MDS Pharma Services, Medical Devices, Medical Supply, outsourcing, Pharmaceuticals, Startups, Universities, Videos by john

The CRO crowd tracking the fate of troubled Cetero Research over the past year has been treated to a series of twists and turns as the story developed. Slammed by the FDA for producing falsified data at its Houston lab--which the company blamed on a handful of errant employees--Cetero recently filed for bankruptcy protection while scouting for a buyer. As we reported earlier, the company's lenders have filed a "stalking horse" bid for the CRO, looking for a new buyer who can take over and move ahead.

Today, Pharmalot's Ed Silverman notes that a group of executives at the company are seeking court permission for a $1.3 million bonus on the sale of the company. As Pharmalot adds, it's quite common for key executives to look for bonuses when they steer a company through bankruptcy. They're the ones expected to hold it all together for the new owner.

Interestingly, Silverman also notes that some current and former execs at Cetero once worked for MDS Pharma Services, another CRO that had to defend its test results before it was sold. A hearing on the bankruptcy is slated for the end of the week.

- here's the story from Pharmalot

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FDA accusations of 'corrupt' lab practices push Cetero into bankruptcy
Cetero fires back at scathing FDA accusations
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Cetero preps for new owner after filing for bankruptcy protection

Posted under bankruptcy, Blog, Cetero Research, Companies, CRO, Diagnostics, Funding, M&A, Medical Devices, Medical Supply, outsourcing, Pharmaceuticals, Startups, Universities, Videos by john

Despite filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday, the Cary, NC-based CRO Cetero insists it has no plans to cease daily operations or ongoing research. And if all goes as planned, Cetero will find itself under new ownership within the next 120 days. "Throughout the reorganization process there will be no change to day‐to‐day operations at any of Cetero's facilities. Each and every one will continue to run and actively take on new studies," Cetero said in a statement to FierceCRO.  Report

Growing popularity of virtual biotechs promises boon to outsourcers

Posted under Blog, Companies, Diagnostics, FerroKin Biosciences, Funding, Medical Devices, Medical Supply, outsourcing, Pharmaceuticals, Shire Pharmaceuticals, Startups, Universities, Videos, Virtual model by John Carroll

The recent news that tiny FerroKin BioSciences earned a big buyout deal with Shire ($SHPGY) has helped spotlight the growing popularity of the virtual biotech model. And that has big implications for everyone in the outsourcing industry.

Like other virtuals--such as Stromedix, recently acquired by Biogen Idec ($BIIB)--FerroKin had only a handful of employees working full-time for the company. CROs, CMOs and other outsourcers created a network of support vendors that carried out much of the heavy lifting in drug research. And with some proof of concept data in hand, FerroKin made a tantalizing morsel for an acquirer looking to build up its pipeline without having to acquire a sizable research infrastructure it didn't need.

There's little doubt that a number of venture companies are behind this trend, as several made clear to me at BIO-Europe Spring in Amsterdam earlier this week. Investors like CMEA, Index and others believe that virtual companies can quickly accelerate a drug program to PoC, giving them a chance to cash out relatively quickly with a sale to Big Pharma. And the trend hasn't escaped the attention of the outsourcing industry as a whole.

"There's a herd mentality. If there's a string of successes, then the herd will follow," says Celtic Pharma's lead counsel Allan Cohen, according to a story in Outsourcing-Pharma.

- here's the story from Outsourcing-Pharma

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Virtual is beautiful in biotech
FerroKin buyout underscores potential of the virtual biotech
Shire nabs Bay Area's FerroKin, orphan drug in $325M buyout