PCI Pharma Services secures additional funding to boost US sterile fill-finish drug capacity

Philadelphia-based PCI Pharma Services, a global contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), has secured a new strategic investment co-led by Bain Capital and existing lead investor Kohlberg, with continued support from Mubadala Investment Company and Partners Group. The financial terms of the private transaction were not disclosed.

The deal values PCI at $10 billion, including debt, according to The Wall Street Journal. Under Kohlberg and Mubadala’s ownership since 2020, PCI’s revenue has doubled and its customer base has quadrupled, as it has grown from a packaging-focused business into a full-service CDMO operating more than 30 facilities across North America, Europe, and Australia. 

“This ranks as one of the largest private deals in pharmaceutical services in recent memory,” Jack Shute, managing director of U.K.-based staffing and recruiting firm Vector, wrote in a LinkedIn posting. “It reflects growing recognition that CDMOs with scale, technical depth and global reach are foundational to drug development and delivery. Institutional investors are now treating these businesses as strategic, long-term assets.” 

The investment will support PCI’s expansion of its sterile fill-finish, high-potent manufacturing, and biologics capabilities — especially in the U.S. — as it continues building out its end-to-end development, manufacturing and packaging services for complex drugs. The company said it plans to pursue both organic growth and acquisitions.

In May, PCI completed its acquisition of Ajinomoto Althea, a U.S.-based sterile fill-finish CDMO previously owned by Japan’s Ajinomoto Co. The deal, announced April 24, is part of PCI’s broader $1 billion investment strategy aimed at expanding sterile manufacturing capabilities and advancing its drug-device combination product portfolio.

PCI’s leadership said the new funding will enable continued investment in infrastructure to support demand for sterile injectables, GLP-1 therapies and drug-device combinations.

“This investment reflects our continued commitment to deliver scale, speed and technical depth to biopharmaceutical innovators,” Salim Haffar, CEO of PCI, said in a statement.

Currently, the company operates 38 sites in seven countries — the U.S., Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Spain, and Australia — and has over 7,500 employees. Its expansion strategy aims to support U.S. pharmaceutical supply chain resilience, while accelerating time to market for complex therapies.

“Leveraging global growth trends in biologics and specialized drug therapies, PCI’s future investments will include expansion of existing sterile fill-finish of injectables and high potent and specialized manufacturing capacity,” according to the company.

Large-scale GMP manufacturing activities for sterile fill-finish products are set to begin this summer at PCI’s new 50,000-square-foot facility at its Bedford, New Hampshire campus. The site is the third high throughput, isolator-based commercial sterile fill-finish facility that the CDMO has built in the last four years.