Ora, the leading global ophthalmic contract research organization (CRO), is excited to announce that it has been recapitalized by The Vistria Group, a middle-market private investment firm that seeks to deliver both financial returns and societal impact.
With this investment, The Vistria Group will support Ora as the globally preferred clinical research partner of ophthalmic innovators. It also marks The Vistria Group’s commitment to further supporting cutting-edge therapies and advancing diversity in specialized clinical research. Ora is the seventh company in The Vistria Group’s pharma services portfolio and underscores the firm’s continued focus on life sciences.
“Ora is a leader in ophthalmic clinical research, and we are delighted to partner with the Ora team in the next chapter of its growth. We invested in Ora because of its strong globally recognized brand, demonstrated innovation, service excellence, and tenured team of ophthalmology veterans, many who have worked together for decades, leading to an unparalleled record bringing over 85 drugs and devices to market,” says Natasha Latif, Partner for Healthcare at The Vistria Group. “We are excited to build on Ora’s track record of success of partnering with customers and bringing new life-enhancing treatments to patients around the world.”
Ora’s President, Chairman & CEO, Stuart Abelson will transition to Ora’s board of directors where he will focus on vision, strategy, customer relationships and organizational culture. Paul Colvin, who has served as Ora’s Chief Operating Officer for the past year and a half and a veteran CRO leader with over 30 years of experience, will become Ora’s CEO.
Stuart Abelson noted,
“We are proud to have built a company where the best talent in ophthalmology comes to work and thrive. At Ora, we prioritize our employees and place the patient at the center of everything we do. This approach allows us to serve our clients and support our research sites to deliver the highest quality data, ensuring each drug and device has the best chance of success. Ora’s brand is renowned globally as the go-to place for ophthalmology research, and we are honored to support many of the most exciting and impactful development programs across all ophthalmic indications. The Vistria Group’s investment will allow us to continue scaling Ora’s global operations and implementing advanced technologies to support ophthalmology innovators in developing the next generation of products. With Paul Colvin as CEO, Ora is well positioned for its next phase of growth, leveraging his extensive experience in leading large CROs.”
Paul Colvin, Ora CEO, stated, “After a year and a half at Ora, I have come to appreciate why we are able to attract the best talent and deliver next-level service for clients. Our therapeutic focus, innovative research methods, models, scales, global research site network, and tenured team deliver an unparalleled customer experience that creates the high-quality reproducible data essential for our clients to efficiently develop their products. Our longstanding leadership team is fully engaged and excited about The Vistria Group’s investment. We remain committed to upholding the Ora experience that our clients have come to expect, ensuring continuity, innovation, and excellence as we embark on this new chapter together.”
