The carve-out acquisition will allow Bain to capitalize on the “promising signs for growth” in the Japanese life sciences market, recently revitalized by more industry-friendly policy changes from the government.
Bain Capital on Friday dropped $3.3 billion to acquire Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation in a carve-out deal, giving the investment firm access to the Japanese life sciences space.
Tanabe will function independently of its previous parent Mitsubishi Chemical Group Corporation and will continue to work on its priority areas, including vaccines, diabetes and metabolic diseases and central nervous system conditions. Tanabe has around 5,000 employees globally, though it is not clear yet how the acquisition will affect them.
Bain and Tanabe expect to close the acquisition agreement in the third quarter of 2025, pending shareholder approvals, necessary regulatory clearances and other customary conditions.
The buyout is an “exciting opportunity” for the capital manager, Bain partner Ricky Sun said in a statement, noting that there are “promising signs for growth” in Japan, amid “initiatives” from the government and regulatory bodies to “accelerate the development and approval of innovative medicines in the Japanese market.”
In April 2024, the Japanese government announced that it would lower the hurdles for international pharmaceutical companies seeking drug approvals in Japan. According to reporting from The Japan News, the move was meant to address Japan’s “drug loss” problem, where the latest and most effective medicines approved in other countries fail to enter the Japanese market due to its complex approval pathways.
The proposed guideline changes include a conditional approval program—similar to the FDA’s accelerated pathway—and a special approval process for substitute substances that can be used in case of supply problems.
Bain has a track record in biopharma with many of its portfolio companies securing high-value, big-ticket exits. For instance, neuro specialist Cerevel Therapeutics was acquired by AbbVie in December 2023 for $8.7 billion. Shortly after, respiratory and inflammatory drug developer Aiolos Bio was snapped up by GSK in January 2024 for $1.4 billion.
Bain closed its fourth fund in September 2024, bringing in around $3 billion to back life science companies developing “transformative medicines, medical devices, diagnostics, and life sciences tools that have the potential to improve the lives of patients with unmet medical needs.” Since its founding in 2016, Bain has raised around $6.7 billion.
