THL Partners, a leading private equity firm focused on middle-market growth companies, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Headlands Research, a multinational network of clinical trial sites, from KKR. This partnership aims to enhance Headlands’ technology and infrastructure, improving its ability to deliver high-quality clinical trial data for pharmaceutical and biotech sponsors.
Headlands operates clinical trial sites across North America, with a focus on key therapeutic areas, including central nervous system disorders, vaccines, and metabolic diseases. It leverages strong physician relationships and a data-driven model to deliver quality results and increase access for underrepresented patient populations.
Founded by KKR in 2018, Headlands has experienced significant growth through strategic acquisitions and investments in operational excellence. THL’s recent research indicates that many biopharma companies are continuing to increase their R&D investments despite regulatory uncertainty, positioning THL to support Headlands in bringing new therapies to market.
THL will invest in Headlands through its Fund IX, with the transaction expected to close in 2025 pending customary conditions. THL has over 25 years of experience in pharma services, with investments in companies such as Fisher Scientific and Syneos Health, making it a strong partner for Headlands.
Advisors/support: McDermott Will & Schulte and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison served as legal advisors to THL, and Jefferies as lead financial advisor. Edgemont Partners also acted as a financial advisor to THL. KKR and Headlands were advised on the transaction by Houlihan Lokey as exclusive financial advisor and Kirkland & Ellis as legal advisor.
KEY QUOTES:
“This is an exciting moment for our industry, with groundbreaking science and new therapies emerging at an unprecedented pace. I’d like to thank KKR for their tremendous support since our founding. Together, we’ve built an outstanding business with a highly dedicated team working every day to advance medical research. THL shares our vision and excitement for the opportunity to accelerate clinical trial innovation, and we couldn’t be more excited to work with their team as we seek to build on the strong foundation that we have in place.”
Kyle Burtnett, CEO of Headlands
“Given the accelerated pace of research and development, innovative companies such as Headlands are critical to advancing clinical trials with precision, scale, and flexibility. We’re thrilled to partner with Kyle and the Headlands team to enable faster, more inclusive access to new therapies in a dynamic environment.”
Megan Preiner, Managing Director at THL
“We initially founded Headlands with a mission to improve the clinical trial industry and build a best-in-class platform. We’re honored to have partnered with Kyle and the management team to scale Headlands into a premier clinical trial site network. We wish Kyle, the management team, and THL continued success with Headlands.”
Ali Satvat, Partner and Global Head of Health Care Strategic Growth at KKR, and Anuv Ratan, Director at KKR
