THE WHAT? Drug delivery and consumer dispensing company AptarGroup has signed a share purchase agreement for the majority stake in French digital therapeutics (DTx) developer Voluntis. 

THE DETAILS The deal will see Aptar, which designs and manufactures drug delivery, consumer product dispensing and active material science solutions for the pharmaceutical, beauty, and personal care markets, buy approximately 64.6 percent of the share capital of Voluntis at a price of €8.70 per share.

Aptar will also launch a mandatory cash tender to acquire the remaining shares of the business for the same share price, with the entire deal expected to complete by the end of Q3 2021, subject to approval by the French Ministry of Economy under the foreign investment clearance regulations.

The acquisition values Voluntis at approximately $79 million, with Pierre Laurent, CEO and Co-Founder of the company, remaining in his role following deal closure. 

THE WHY? The deal will see Aptar expand further into the DTx space, with Voluntis having a strong foothold in the market having gained European and U.S. approval for a new version of Insulia, a DTx designed to help consumers titrate the correct amount of insulin. 

The company has also created a DTx platform named Theraxium, that is said to be able to be quickly applied to new mobile and cloud-based applications for chronic conditions.

Aptar Pharma President Gael Touya said, “Combining digital therapeutics with our connected device ecosystem, we would offer patients and healthcare professionals a range of effective tools to improve clinical outcomes.”