Alantra strengthens its global healthcare practice with the hiring of a specialized team in the US

Alantra, a global leader in investment banking and asset management, today announced that it has recruited a specialist team in the US to strengthen its global Healthcare practice, including two senior bankers with extensive experience in Healthcare Services, Pharma and Healthcare IT segments.

Rusty Ray (Managing Partner) and Frederic Laurier (Managing Director) joined Alantra from Crosstree Capital where they led the M&A, recapitalization, and growth financing practice, providing advice to clients across the Healthcare sector, ranging from large pharmaceutical firms to early-stage drug development companies. Since 2018, the team has advised on eleven deals for clients such as Pfizer, GSK, Transposagen, SunLink, and Santus, amongst others.

For the past 20 years, Rusty Ray has focused exclusively on Healthcare banking. He served as deputy director for eight years at a Washington, DC-based think tank that conducts independent economic research. During his tenure, the organization performed several studies within the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. Mr. Ray also worked with The Meningitis Research Foundation in London, where he supported basic research to cure the disease. Mr. Ray was formerly on the Board of Directors of Apricus Bio (NASDAQ: APRI) and served as Chairman and a member of its Audit and Corporate Governance committees.

Additionally, the US Healthcare team adds Frederic Laurier, an experienced investment banker that has spent 20 years covering technology companies across the globe for bulge bracket investment banks, including CIBC World Markets and Bear Stearns, as well as boutique banks. During his investment banking career, Mr. Laurier has successfully executed over 50 transactions of all sizes. Before joining Crosstree, he was responsible for covering digital health for the health care investment bank boutique, 11T Partners.

“We are thrilled to add Rusty, Frederic, and their team to Alantra,” said Paul Colone, Managing Partner at Alantra US. “Their track record of deep sector expertise combined with high quality execution is clearly evident from their impressive client roster and lines up exactly with our values and strategic direction. We will enthusiastically support Rusty and Frederic as they lead the development of a broader healthcare team in the US to complement our strong global track record in the sector.”

Rusty Ray, Managing Partner at Alantra, said: “I’m really excited to be part of Alantra’s global platform, especially given the excellent momentum the firm has across its business, and more particularly in Healthcare. I believe Alantra is uniquely positioned to capitalize on the significant market opportunity around Healthcare in the United States, where there is a need for deep sector coverage, a global footprint and buyer access as well as the ability to offer products across M&A, strategic advisory and financing, both debt and equity.”

With these additions, Alantra’s Global Healthcare team now numbers more than 35 professionals across the globe and has completed more than 100 transactions in the last five years. Its activity is focused on Healthcare Services, Consumer Health & OTC, Pharma & Life Sciences, and MedTech. Alantra’s Healthcare team advises business owners, management teams and financial investors throughout the investment lifecycle to help them create and realize value. This includes providing strategic advisory solutions for M&A transactions, raising private and public equity, and debt capital.

In 2020 Alantra’s Global Healthcare team showed great resilience in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic, completing 23 deals worth more than $7bn. Some notable transactions across its focus areas include: