Apotex, a Toronto-based generics maker, inked a deal to acquire fellow Canadian pharma company Searchlight Pharma.
The acquisition, which is expected to be completed by mid-year, is expected to boost Apotex’s expansion in the specialty branded pharma market with the addition of more than 60 products from Searchlight, the company said in an April 2 press release.
The companies didn't reveal the price of the buyout.
Searchlight's home office will remain in Montreal, and Apotex plans to expand its operations in the province of Quebec.
“This acquisition is a strategic complement to Apotex's leading market position in generic and biosimilar pharmaceuticals, in alignment with our ongoing focus to expand into the high-value, innovative branded pharmaceuticals sector,” Allan Oberman, Apotex president and CEO, said in the release.
Apotex was most recently in the news when it and two of its generics peers agreed in January in a Pennsylvania federal court to settle a price-fixing case that dated back to 2017.
The case, which also involved Heritage Pharmaceuticals and Breckenridge Pharmaceutical, involved claims of price fixing related to drugs they sold to direct purchasers.