News Article

Swedish private equity firm EQT has fully divested from Swiss-based global pure-play dermatology company Galderma.

On March 13, EQT and its co-investors, including the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Singapore’s GIC, offloaded their remaining 14.3% stake. The sale of approximately 34 million shares generated roughly 4.9 billion Swiss francs (£4.65bn), making it the largest sponsor-backed block trade in history. The EQT VIII fund received approximately 1.3bn Swiss francs as a result.

This final sell-down concludes a highly lucrative six-year investment cycle that began when the EQT-led consortium carved out the business from Nestlé for roughly 10.2bn Swiss francs in 2019. Over the life of the investment, the consortium realised approximately 21bn Swiss francs in total proceeds, securing a return of more than four times their initial capital and marking the largest value-creation outcome in EQT’s history.

During EQT’s ownership, Galderma transitioned into a standalone market leader, growing its revenues from 2.8bn dollars in 2018 to 5.2bn dollars in 2025. Over the same period, the company more than doubled its EBITDA to 1.2bn dollars, driven by heavy investment in research and development and the successful commercialisation of blockbuster pipeline assets like the biologic drug Nemluvio

The exit of the private equity sponsors signals a broader shift in Galderma’s strategic governance. L’Oréal Groupe recently expanded its own equity investment in the dermatology company to 20 percent, paving the way for L’Oréal to replace EQT representatives on the board of directors at the upcoming annual general meeting.

To signal confidence during the massive share placement, Galderma deployed its existing liquidity to repurchase 1.6 million shares for 232m Swiss francs. With the stock currently trading at nearly triple its initial public offering price of 53 Swiss francs, investors and healthcare operators are now closely watching how Galderma will leverage its increased public float and strong organic growth targets to sustain its premium valuation in the highly competitive consumer health market.