Arzneimittel: Französischer Pharmariese Sanofi steigt bei deutscher Cheplapharm ein

München - German pharmaceutical company Cheplapharm has acquired more than a quarter of Sanofi, the French pharmaceutical group, in a deal worth over a quarter of shares. In exchange, Cheplapharm will receive 20 of Sanofi's 20 medicinal brands, including the anticoagulant Lovenox, also known as Clexane. Sanofi will now hold 26.4% of Cheplapharm's shares, marking its first investment as a shareholder.

Cheplapharm will also start manufacturing medicines in-house, taking over three factories in Hungary, Singapore, and France, which produce Lovenox and employ a total of 565 people. Cheplapharm, which currently employs 800 people, has previously outsourced all its pharmaceutical production. The two companies have been working together since 2014 but this was the first time they had an equity investment.

Cheplapharm has specialized in established medicines that larger pharmaceutical companies want to get rid of in order to focus on lucrative innovations. Through high-interest bonds, Cheplapharm has built up a portfolio of over 100 medicines over 30 years, with Eli Lilly's Zyprexa purchase costing 1.3 billion euros three years ago.

Last year, Cheplapharm generated revenue of 1.66 billion euros and an operating result (Ebitda) of 643 million euros. Fitch Ratings has stated that the company could aim for further acquisitions after a consolidation phase in the second half of 2026. After a failed stock market debut, Cheplapharm secured investment from financial investors Atlantic Park and GIC, injecting 550 million euros into the company.

Cheplapharm is owned by siblings Sebastian Braun and Bianca Juha, whose father Norbert Braun once led Riemser Pharma AG before selling it to a financial investor.