German drug discovery company EvoTec BioSystems (Hamburg) has acquired the UK firm Oxford Assymetry (Abingdon) in an all-share takeover bid worth around £316 million ($473 million). This is the first time a German company has bought a UK biotech company, reflecting the growing strength of the German biotech sector. EvoTec said the acquisition would create a “‘one-stop shop’ for value-added drug discovery and development services”. EvoTec specializes in ultra-high-throughout screening and assay development, but lacked the expertise in medicinal chemistry that Oxford Assymetry can provide. Evotec offered to buy Oxford Assymetry's shares at a 46% premium to the price at the close of last dealing day prior to the announcement. The enlarged company will have a market value of around $1.3billion, which will give it the critical mass to be competitive with other contract research companies such as Aurora Biosciences (San Diego, CA).

Companies with medicinal chemistry expertise have recently become highly attractive to drug discovery companies. In July, Millennium Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, MA) paid £33.5 million ($50 million) for UK's Cambridge Drug Discovery (Cambridge, UK) in July—also at a significant premium.