Advent withdraws from bidding for Pfizer's Brazilian generic drugs joint venture

24 Mar 2017

Private equity firm Advent International has withdrawn from a bidding process to buy Pfizer's Brazilian generic drugs joint venture, Reuters yesterday reported, citing two people with direct knowledge of the matter.

The move has left Bain Capital as the only contender in the race for Laboratório Teuto Brasileiro SA, known as Teuto/Pfizer, the report said.

Bain Capital has not yet tabled a final, binding offer for Teuto/Pfizer, which owns Latin America's largest generic drugs plant.

Pfizer holds 40-per cent of the Teuto/Pfizer joint venture, while the Melo family holds the remaining 60-per cent stake.

Pfizer and the Melos put Teuto/Pfizer up for sale last July and hired the investment banking units of Goldman Sachs and Grupo BTG Pactual SA as advisers.

A sale could fetch Pfizer and the Melos between 1 billion and 1.5 billion reais ($324 million and $486 million) the report added.

Teuto/Pfizer is the largest pharmaceutical complex in Latin America having more than 700 generics drugs, which represent 50 of branded generic, prescription drugs, hospital line, herbal medicines, food supplements and cosmetics.

Teuto/Pfizer also exports its drugs to Central America, South America, Africa, the Middle East and Portugal.