On October 1, 2021, the American group Veranex acquired IMMR from MBO & Co, Fincap Invest and their co-investors Matmut and MGEN. The managers will reinvest partially and be fully involved in the integration process.
IMMR is a world-renowned CRO (Contract Research Organisation) and a market leader in the design and conduct of MedTech and Biotech preclinical studies in large models. Founded in 1987, the company benefits from state-of-the-art equipment and unique know-how to conduct complex preclinical studies. Since its creation, IMMR has been recognized as a world reference in cardiovascular research, and has notably contributed to the TAVI revolution that has now allowed hundreds of thousands patients to benefit from aortic valve replacement through transcatheter approach. IMMR also excels in other therapeutic areas such as urology and neurology.
Backed by MBO & Co and Fincap since 2016, Luc Behr and Nicolas Borenstein, IMMR’s scientific directors, have deeply transformed the entire organisation and strengthened its research capabilities. This has enabled IMMR to support its strong growth and become a leading pre-clinical medical device CRO while maintaining the best level of scientific excellence. In 5 years, workforce and turnover have been multiplied by 3x.
After a remarkable journey as an independent company, IMMR joins Veranex to create a unique integrated platform dedicated to supporting MedTech companies in all phases of their product development, from concept through to commercialization.
Cécile Nguyen-Cluzel, partner at MBO & Co, say: “We are proud and deeply satisfied to have accompanied Luc Behr and Nicolas Borenstein who have made IMMR a world-renowned center of excellence in pre-clinical research. They have driven the company’s growth while maintaining a very strong scientific expertise and a high level of quality, which are at the heart of the company’s raison d’être, and have been decisive for the Veranex group, which shares the same values in its project as IMMR.”
Christophe Bourret and Romain Garbay, partners at Fincap Invest, added: “We have spent more than 7 years working together with Luc, Nicolas and Emmanuel (IMMR’s CFO) and seeing them joining, with all their team, an ambitious and meaningful project is truly rewarding. IMMR team will continue to express its knowhow while being supported by high-level peers widely acknowledged in the MedTech environment. We wish them all the success they deserve in their fulfilling journey of accelerating medical innovation in order to save lives”.
Luc Behr and Nicolas Borenstein, IMMR’s scientific directors, stated: “Contribute to the human health improvement, in particular through breakthrough innovation in surgical research, is what has driven us all these years. We have always been eager to offer the best surgical and interventional service to start-ups and MedTech blue chips for their preclinical research both scientific and regulatory. After a necessary structuration phase and a remarkable growth, where MBO & Co and Fincap have given us an unwavering support and a true guidance, we needed to join a strong and ambitious platform, Veranex, to offer a broader range of services, and enable to accelerate the medical device validation phase.”