Czura Thornton Ltd. has acquired Chiltern International for an undisclosed amount. Czura Thornton, a private investment group led by Antony Czura and Nick Thornton, has acquired more than 90% of Chiltern, a global CRO, with the remainder expected to be acquired over the next few weeks.

Chiltern runs national and international Phase I to Phase IV trials across a broad range of therapeutic areas. The company has offices throughout the U.S., Europe and India, with headquarters in Slough, UK, and Carlsbad, CA. Chiltern provides clinical operations, project management, bio-analytical, data management, biostatistics, medical writing, quality assurance and regulatory and medical affairs services to the pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical and medical device industries. The company also offers clinical contract personnel services.

Simon Garnham, co-founder of Chiltern, will step down as chief executive officer effective immediately. A new chief executive will be announced soon. Nick Thornton, who has been named executive vice chairman, will also act as chief executive until the announcement. Roland Boyd has been appointed chief financial officer.

“We have long admired Chiltern’s reputation in the industry for providing a comprehensive range of high quality products and excellent customer service,” said Mr. Thornton. “We look forward to bringing the investment and resources needed for the next phase of the Company’s growth as a leading, global, full-service clinical CRO. We are committed to ensuring a smooth transition for the customers and employees of Chiltern, with no impact in the day to day operation of the business anticipated as a result of this change in ownership.”

Mr. Garnham commented, “My family is delighted to have found a buyer that understands our business so well and is committed to maintaining our high quality service offering and to our most important resource, our people, who have worked so hard for Chiltern’s success. We look forward to seeing Chiltern’s continued growth and would like to thank all our staff, suppliers and customers for their support over many years.”