PHI catches eye of major investor
The private Swiss Distributor and Investment Company Altium has acquired a corner of Swedish medtech company Phase Holographic Imaging, making them its largest owner. The announcement prompted a sharp positive market reaction. BioStock contacted Altium’s CEO Goran Dubravcic to learn more about their incentives to invest in PHI.
Phase Holographic Imaging (PHI) has developed and markets the HoloMonitor, an advanced instrument for non-invasive cell culture analysis. HoloMonitor technology neither influences the cells nor causes uncharacteristic cell behavior. This means that the cells are not affected by the measurement method, which is very relevant in drug development and basic medical research for accurate and cost-efficient research and satisfying patient outcomes.
Gaining traction in the industry
Last year, PHI diversified its commercial ambitions. The company began focusing more on clinical applications, not least on the development of regenerative medicine, rather than strictly targeting the pre-clinical research market in academia and industry. Regenerative medicine enables the repairing or replacement of dysfunctional cells, tissues, and organs. With this new focus, the company soon started gaining more attention in the life science sector.
The latest sign of this transformation is the Swiss private investment company Altium’s recent acquisition of Formue Nord’s entire holdings in PHI. The acquisition corresponds to 11.8 percent of the total number of shares and votes in PHI. Altium had no previous holdings in PHI before this transaction.
»When we looked at PHI technology, we got impressed. And when we saw whom PHI partners with, the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, BioSpherix and global analytics company SAS, the investment decision was very easy. Here we have a company that will be part of the future of medicine« – Goran Dubravcic, CEO Altium
Altium´s CEO – we share a common vision
To learn more about Altium´s decision to take a big stake in PHI, BioStock contacted CEO Goran Dubravcic with three quick questions:
Goran, to start with, can you briefly present Altium and your investment philosophy?
– Altium is the biggest Distributor organization within its designated territories. We made all our representative brands become market leaders through a dedicated and focused approach together with the highest level of application methodology. Also, we are constantly searching to acquire new technologies from the diagnostic field of business and other areas we operate within. As a distributor, we join a partnership with PHI and felt immediately that this is the path we need to go together and maximize its potential.
What got your team interested in PHI and its HoloMonitor?
– We believe regenerative medicine will be as big as today’s pharmaceutical industry market within a very short time. However, for regenerative medicine to make this massive breakthrough, it will need trusting and standardized quality controls from bedside to biomanufacturing facilities to ensure the highest patient safety.
– When we looked at PHI technology, we got impressed. And when we saw whom PHI partners with, the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, BioSpherix and global analytics company SAS, the investment decision was very easy. Here we have a company that will be part of the future of medicine.
What will Altium bring to the table, being the largest shareholder of PHI?
– In a short time, we believe that our distributor network and global sales contacts can strengthen increasing the sales of PHI’s current product portfolio. Looking at 2025 and beyond, we intend, as active owners, to help PHI transform from a small, developing company to a company delivering positive cash flow and dividends but, above all, to provide a unique approach to upcoming medicine solutions.
The content of BioStock’s news and analyses is independent but the work of BioStock is to a certain degree financed by life science companies. The above article concerns a company from which BioStock has received financing.