SAUDI ARABIA – CENTOGENE, a German data-driven rare disease company headquartered in Rostock, and Lifera are set to form a joint venture (JV) to offer multiomic testing services to patients in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
CENTOGENE is the essential life science partner for data-driven answers in rare and neurodegenerative diseases while Lifera is a biopharmaceutical company wholly owned by the Public Investment Fund (PIF).
The CENTOGENE-Lifera joint venture aims to improve accessibility and availability of world-class multiomic testing services to patients in Saudi Arabia and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.
This deal comes as the global genetic testing market is expected to reach US$28.24 billion by 2030 according to public data published by Bloomberg.
The joint statement said: “The JV will build an advanced laboratory and bioinformatics infrastructure – leveraging the CENTOGENE Biodatabank, which has more than 70 million and over 35,000 Saudi Arabian patient datasets.”
The strategic alliance brings together CENTOGENE’s extensive know-how in the Saudi market with Lifera’s deep understanding of the local healthcare landscape to increase local and regional access to genetic testing services throughout the region.
As part of this agreement, CENTOGENE, the current market leader in outsourced genetic testing for patients in Saudi Arabia, will provide its leading diagnostics and multiomics expertise to the JV.
The JV will develop capabilities for genetic testing and interpretation working collaboratively with CENTOGENE globally – serving as a vehicle for large national screening and genomics programs.
“Lifera will make an investment into CENTOGENE in the form of a US$30 million mandatorily convertible loan which shall convert before 2024 into common stock of CENTOGENE at a conversion price of US$2.20,” the companies claimed.
What’s more, CENTOGENE and Lifera will be represented on the Board of Directors of the new joint venture.
The joint venture aims to be operational by 2024, offering widespread access to local state-of-the-art genetic sequencing tailored to meet regional needs.
Under the terms of this agreement, Lifera and CENTOGENE will make an investment in the newly formed joint venture.
CENTOGENE will also be eligible for significant JV performance-related milestone payments and revenue-based royalties until the year 2033.
As part of this deal, CENTOGENE will select two company representatives from Lifera to join its Supervisory Board. A final closing of the deal is expected to take place in the third quarter of 2023.
“Teaming up with Lifera marks a significant step forward in our mission to deliver data-driven, life-changing answers to patients around the world and forms a pathway to achieving sustainable growth and profitability for CENTOGENE,” Kim Stratton, Chief Executive Officer at CENTOGENE, said in an official statement.
In this strategic collaboration, CENTOGENE and Lifera intend to accelerate access to the world’s most advanced and effective diagnostic offerings for patients in Saudi Arabia and the GCC.
The joint venture is anticipated to increase local and regional access to genetic testing services in the GCC countries by leveraging Lifera’s strong local presence and resources and CENTOGENE’s real-world data repository for rare and neurodegenerative diseases.
Moreover, this partnership will pave the way for innovation in biopharma research in rare diseases and provide necessary resources to foster collaborative research across Saudi Arabia and with global partners.
The joint venture’s creation is part of Lifera’s strategic objectives that directly contribute to improving national resilience and health outcomes in Saudi Arabia, aligning with its mission to grow the country’s biopharma sector.
Commenting on this new venture, Dr. Ibrahim Aljufalli, Chairman of the Lifera Board, said: “With CENTOGENE’s expertise in the field of rare, metabolic, and neurodegenerative diseases, we see tremendous potential value for the JV to provide more timely and accurate diagnoses that are crucial to patients and their families.”
Dr. Aljufalli underscored that the joint venture will provide accurate, timely, and patient-centered diagnoses relying on a comprehensive diagnostic portfolio that goes beyond standard laboratory testing and medical interpretation.
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