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September 23 2002 Press release
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| FIT Biotech acquires a share of Quattromed |
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FIT Biotech Plc acquires a minority share of the estonian biotech company Quattromed in order to strengthen its market position and broaden the business opprtunities.
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| Summary |
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FIT Biotech Plc and Quattromed OÜ announced today that they have started closer and broader collaboration to continue to strengthen the market position of both companies in the field of medical biotechnology. FIT Biotech obtained 22,4 % of the shares of Quattromed OÜ and it has an option to increase the ownership up to 100 % until 2006.
FIT Biotech has operated part of its R&D functions in Tartu, Estonia since January 2001. "The transaction today is a part of FIT Biotech's long term strategy for establishing a center of excellences for gene technology, molecular biology, immunology and virology capable to serve in FIT Biotech's technologically demanding product development of vaccine and gene therapy products as well as being potentially capable to create high quality and cost effective contract R&D services to customer companies in the above mentioned areas. Closer collaboration, joint R&D and contract service programs increases the possibilities to strengthen the market positions and broaden the business opportunities for both companies", says the CEO & President of FIT Biotech, Dr. Pekka Sillanaukee.
"This transaction is the first one, in which a strategic investor is obtaining a share of an Estonian biotech company," says the CEO of Quattromed OÜ, Mr. Erki Mölder.
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| FIT Biotech Plc |
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FIT Biotech Plc is an innovative global medical biotechnology company engaged in the development and commercialization of novel DNA -vaccines and diagnostic products for unmet clinical needs. These products are based on the company's Gene Transport Unit (GTU®), artificial immunogen, recombinant protein and antibody technology platforms. FIT Biotech established its current operations in 1998 and is located in Tampere, Finland, in Tartu, Estonia and in Bangkok, Thailand.
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| Quattromed OÜ |
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Quattromed was founded in Tartu in 1999 as a biotech spin-off company of Tartu University.
Today, two separated business units are run - the company provides molecular diagnostics service for Estonian medical institutions for sensitive and specific detecting and genotyping of infectious diseases; for the researchers of functional genomics and proteomics, novel tools and services in the fields of cell and molecular biology, biochemistry, immunochemistry or pharmacology are provided. The company employs currently 22 employees. International patent application to protect the developed technology was submitted in 2001.
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Tarto, Estonia 23rd of September 2002
FIT Biotech Plc
Pekka Sillanaukee
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| Further information |
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CEO & President Pekka Sillanaukee, PhD, eMBA
FIT Biotech Oyj Plc.
Tel. +358 3 3138 7000
Fax. +358 3 3138 7050
pekka.sillanaukee@fitbiotech.com
www.fitbiotech.com
CEO Erki Mölder
Quattromed OÜ
Tel. +372 7 380 276
Fax. +372 7 380 284
erki.molder@quattromed.ee
www.quattromed.ee
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