A medical software firm that recently moved its headquarters from the Bay Area to Phoenix has also gained a major new investor.
Title21 Health Solutions, a software provider for cell and gene therapy labs, is gaining a new majority owner in France-based ArchiMed, a trans-Atlantic private health care specialist.
Financial details of the deal were not disclosed, but ArchiMed said that Title21’s founders and management will retain a significant minority stake in the company — which is named after the regulatory code governing the U.S. food and drug industries.
The company, which was founded in 2001 and until this year had been located in Pleasanton, California, recently moved its headquarters to Phoenix. Title21’s website shows the company has an office at 2325 E. Camelback Road in Phoenix, and its careers page has several management and software development positions open in Phoenix.
Title21 CEO and co-founder Lynn Fischer confirmed that the company moved its headquarters and that she is in the Valley full time. She cited the state’s business-friendly environment as a key reason for the move.
French investor bullish on Title21
Title21 helps labs reduce paperwork with its digital services. Its clients include the Mayo Clinic, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Stanford University, Kaiser Permanente and the University of Pennsylvania Health System, among other major hospital and research institutions.
ArchiMed said it initiated contact with Title21 to make the deal, and is using its MED III fund to make the investment. That fund, which invests in small-cap health care sectors in Europe and the Americas, closed on 650 million euros in August after two months of fundraising, ArchiMed said.
Fischer said that ArchiMed stood out from other potential partners.
“They share our sense of urgency when it comes to supporting the commercialization of advanced therapies through efficient, easily traceable and scalable technology,” Fischer said in a statement. “They impressed us with their deep domain expertise and track record in cell and gene therapy and as a global leader in health care software investing. We couldn’t have found a better partner with whom to scale.”
ArchiMed’s investments in health care software include Italy-based Cardioline, a specialist in remote cardiology testing, and Florida-based ActiGraph, a developer of wearable, remote technology used in drug trials.
The investor also said it can more than double its investment in Title21 to support growth.
“Title21 is clearly the best candidate to accelerate digitization in the cell and gene therapy space, not just in the U.S., but globally,” ArchiMed Founding Partner Vincent Guillaumot said in a statement. “Title21’s technology is the most advanced in the world when it comes to ease-of-use, scalability and breadth of offering. As part of this new partnership, we’ll leverage long-established relationships with U.S. hospital groups, accelerate the group’s research and development and help Title21 expand rapidly in Europe and Asia.”
ArchiMed is making three appointments to Title21’s board as a result of its investment. They are:
- Peter Bailey, the former CEO of New Jersey-based LabVantage
- Brian Smith, an operating partner at ArchiMed who is chairman and CEO of ArchiMed-owned Ad-Tech Medical Instrument Corp., based in Wisconsin
- Dan Drawbaugh, CEO of Colorado-based Steadman Clinic.
