Specialty pharmaceutical company, Alliance Pharma plc, has completed the £127.5million acquisition of a portfolio of dermatological assets from Sinclair IS Pharma plc.

£100million of debt facilities have been provided in support of the transaction, with funding from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, The Royal Bank of Scotland plc (RBS) and Silicon Valley Bank (SVB).

Established in 1998, AIM-listed Alliance previously marketed more than 60 pharmaceutical or healthcare brands, predominantly in Europe.

The acquisition of 27 products, including five key growth brands Kelo-Cote™, Flammacerium™, Aloclair™, Kelo-stretch™, and Atopiclair™, will see it almost double in size.

Alliance said the deal – which comprises £127.5million for the portfolio of products and other assets, and around £4.7million in inventory – would also enable it to greatly increase its footprint outside the UK, with almost half the new company’s sales coming from overseas markets such as the US and Asia Pacific.

The deal is classed as a reverse takeover by stock market rules, and will be satisfied by a combination of new loans and shares.

Alliance chief executive John Dawson said the deal was a very significant development for the company.

He said: “The completion of this acquisition creates a much larger business for Alliance, with a significant part of its business outside of the UK.

“Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, RBS and SVB have been instrumental in helping us secure the funding required to achieve this transformative deal, paving the way for the future international growth of Alliance by giving us a much greater ability to compete for international deals and in-licensing opportunities.”

Peter Jackson, Director of Thames Valley & South Mid Markets team for Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, said: “The assets being acquired by Alliance greatly complement its existing activity and strategy and give it a much broader and more balanced portfolio, and a genuinely global reach.

“The acquisition will be genuinely transformative for Alliance and, we believe, will help it to continue to prosper on the international stage.

“Successful mid-market businesses like Alliance play a key part in driving the UK’s economic growth and Lloyds Bank is committed to helping them by providing the backing they need to grasp future growth opportunities such as this.”

Ian Bamber, Senior Relationship Director at RBS Corporate Banking said “Alliance is one of our key clients in the region and we were keen to increase our support to the business to facilitate this transformational acquisition.”

Roshan Wijayarathna, Director, UK Corporate Banking for SVB, said: “We are delighted to be joining Alliance’s banking group at such an important juncture. This transformative acquisition marks a significant milestone in the company’s growth strategy and creates further geographic and product diversification, setting Alliance up for future expansion. The management team has demonstrated fantastic focus and diligence in completing this acquisition and Silicon Valley Bank looks forward to working with the team going forward.”