Private equity group Nordic Capital has dropped out of the race to buy Sanofi’s European generics business because the “price expectation is very high,” says Financial Times sources.
The European buyout fund was looking to partner with U.S. peer Blackstone for the potential acquisition of the unit, which could be worth up to 2.4 billion.
In February, Reuters, citing sources, reported that bidders included Brazilian drug company EMS and Indian rival Torrent Pharma, as well as a consortium of Blackstone and Nordic Capital and three other private equity funds.
Sanofi's generic drugs portfolio includes cardiovascular and gastrointestinal drugs as well as painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs. The drugmaker, which has has undertaken a series of big acquisitions this year, first hinted at the possible sale of its European generic drugs business in late 2015, but instead focused on selling its animal health unit by to Germany’s Boehringer Ingelheim.
