Iceland's Actavis Group didn't succeed in its bid to buy the German generics maker Ratiopharm, but it has nabbed the company's former chief executive. Actavis has chosen the ex-chief of Ratiopharm, Claudio Albrecht, as its own new CEO.
A highly publicized bidding war over Ratiopharm, which was sold off by Germany's Merckle family following the death of its patriarch, ended earlier this year. Actavis and Pfizer vied for the company's attention, but generics giant Teva ended up with the winning bid.
Still, Actavis gets a highly experienced player in Albrecht, who helped double Ratiopharm's sales during the eight years he served as CEO. And he has great hopes for his new employer. "Actavis has one of the best R&D pipelines in the industry, but we still need to grow our market presence in many of the big markets. Strong geographic expansion and better market penetration, especially in southern Europe and the emerging markets, will be our goal for the future. I am looking forward to the challenges ahead and working with my new colleagues and building our future together," he says in a statement.
Albrecht replaces Sigurdur Oli Olafsson, who's stepping down after seven years with the company. The new chief will also get a new HQ; the company now has operations in five different countries and is looking for a central location for top management.
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