Alliance Pharma to accept £349.7m buyout offer from biggest investor

Alliance Pharma has agreed to a £349.7 million pound takeover by DBAY Advisors, its biggest shareholder.

The deal would see shareholders get 62.5p per share, representing a 41% uplift on Alliance Pharma’s closing share price of 44.35p on Thursday.

DBAY Advisors, an investment firm based in the Isle of Man, already holds a 27.9% stake in the pharma company.

Alliance Pharma, which sells over-the-counter drugs in more than 100 countries, is listed on London’s Aim index.

It suffered a tumultuous year in 2024, with former chief executive Peter Butterfield stepping down after controversy and several delays to its annual results.

The company has increased its debt pile in recent years by making a slew of small acquisitions, and in February 2022 received a £7.9 million fine from competition regulators for alleged anti-competitive behaviour, which was later overturned.

The company was forced to suspend its dividend in September 2023 and the Competition and Markets Authority tried to disqualify Mr Butterfield as a director.

Mr Butterfield was eventually replaced by Nick Sedgwick, who joined from being UK and Ireland regional director of consumer health at Reckitt Benckiser.

DBAY Advisors wrote on Friday that it was “supportive” of Alliance Pharma’s leadership team, but that it needs to “accelerate investment”.

“It has become apparent to DBAY that Alliance needs time away from the public market to allow it to fully deliver these initiatives in a reasonable timeframe.”