CELEX: 32021M10135
Language: en
Date: 2021-02-16 00:00:00
Title: Commission Decision of 16/02/2021 declaring a concentration to be compatible with the common market (Case No COMP/M.10135 - NORDIC CAPITAL / ASTORG ASSET MANAGEMENT / CYTEL) according to Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (Only the English text is authentic)

EUROPEAN COMMISSION
                                                                Brussels, 16.02.2021
                                                                C(2021) 1157 final
                                                                                 PUBLIC VERSION
                                                                NORDIC CAPITAL X LIMITED
                                                                26 ESPLANADE
                                                                JERSEY JE2 3QA ST HELIER
                                                                CHANNEL ISLANDS
                                                                ASTORG ASSET MANAGEMENT
                                                                S.A.R.L
                                                                2 RUE ALBERT BORSCHETTE F2
                                                                1246 LUXEMBOURG
                                                                LUXEMBOURG
Subject:        Case M.10135 – NORDIC CAPITAL / ASTORG ASSET MANAGEMENT
                / CYTEL
                Commission decision pursuant to Article 6(1)(b) of Council Regulation
                                       1
                (EC) No 139/2004 and Article 57 of the Agreement on the European
                                    2
                Economic Area
Dear Sir or Madam,
1.      On 25 January 2021, the European Commission received notification of a proposed
        concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by which Nordic Capital
        X Limited, acting in its capacity as general partner of Nordic Capital X, L.P. (Jersey,
        Channel Islands), belonging to the Nordic Capital group of funds (“Nordic Capital”)
        and Astorg VII SLP (Luxembourg), a fund managed by Astorg Asset Management
        S.à.r.l. (“Astorg”, Luxembourg) acquire within the meaning of Articles 3(1)(b) and
        3(4) of the Merger Regulation joint control of the whole of Cytel Inc. (“Cytel”, United
        States of America) by way of purchase of shares.3
2.      The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:
             Nordic Capital: group of private equity funds focusing on investments primarily
              in the Nordic region of Europe and selected Northern European sectors. Nordic
1       OJ L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1 (the ‘Merger Regulation’). With effect from 1 December 2009, the Treaty on
        the Functioning of the European Union (‘TFEU’) has introduced certain changes, such as the
        replacement of ‘Community’ by ‘Union’ and ‘common market’ by ‘internal market’. The terminology
        of the TFEU will be used throughout this decision.
2       OJ L 1, 3.1.1994, p. 3 (the ‘EEA Agreement’).
3       Publication in the Official Journal of the European Union No C 34, 1.2.2021, p. 27.
Commission européenne, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Bruxelles, BELGIQUE
Europese Commissie, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Brussel, BELGIË
Tel: +32 229-91111. Fax: +32 229-64301. E-mail: COMP-MERGER-REGISTRY@ec.europa.eu.
 ---pagebreak---         Capital invests across a broad array of industries but has a particular focus on
        healthcare, technology & payments, financial services, industrial & business
        services and consumer products.
       Astorg: European private equity group with offices in London, Paris,
        Luxembourg, Frankfurt, New York and Milan.
       Cytel: provision of data-driven software and services to the pharmaceutical and
        biotechnology industry, offering statistical study design software, data science
        analytics services and consulting to improve clinical trial outcomes
3. After examination of the notification, the European Commission has concluded that
   the notified operation falls within the scope of the Merger Regulation and of
   paragraphs 5(a) and 5(b) of the Commission Notice on a simplified procedure for
   treatment of certain concentrations under Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004.4
4. For the reasons set out in the Notice on a simplified procedure, the European
   Commission has decided not to oppose the notified operation and to declare it
   compatible with the internal market and with the EEA Agreement. This decision is
   adopted in application of Article 6(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation and Article 57 of
   the EEA Agreement.
                                                   For the Commission
                                                   (Signed)
                                                   Olivier GUERSENT
                                                   Director-General
4  OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.
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