The contract research organization Phastar (London) plans to expand its statistics and data science services with funding from Charterhouse Capital Partners, a European private equity firm. Phastar will also use the funds to expand its international footprint, opening an office in China.
“We continue to see strong growth across pharma and biotech services,” said Kevin Kane, CEO of Phastar over email. “Pharma companies are looking to specialist suppliers with experienced staff to provide functional service provision (FSP) services as the larger full-service CROs fail to deliver on quality, and biotechs continue to need strong statistical and data science support for their drug development projects, recognizing that experts in these areas can design better trial programs with fewer patients.
The company already had operations in the U.S., U.K, continental Europe, Africa, Japan and Australia. Last year, the firm opened offices in San Diego and Tokyo. “As we continue to expand globally, and in particular in Asia, we are able to better tap into the global supply of both talent and companies seeking our services,” Kane said.
Phastar will install Dr. Nick Edwards as a non-executive chair. Edwards is now the chairman of the board of directors at Prescient Healthcare Group.
Phastar CEO and the company’s current management team will remain in place.
Phastar offers a range of services to pharmaceutical companies, including statistical consulting, clinical trial reporting and data management.