When it comes to financial institutions based in Boston, Leerink Partners is one of the first investment banks that immediately comes to mind. Today, the independent investment bank is known for providing a collection of financial services to companies in the healthcare industry, including M&A advisory, equity and debt capital markets, proprietary research, and comprehensive sales and trading capabilities. However, many Boston residents may be unaware of the ways the company has changed and grown over its nearly three decades of existence. The company’s long road to success is an apt metaphor for the changes that characterize the continual evolution of a city.
The company’s genesis was the founding of the bank Leerink Swann by Jeffrey A. Leerink in 1995. Leerink’s goal was to create a bank with the capacity to help healthcare organizations navigate common financial challenges such as addressing mergers and acquisitions and defining strategies for capital markets. By 1999, Leerink Swann had been named to the Inc. 500 list of fastest-growing companies in the United States.
In 2009, Leerink Swann experienced its first major expansion when 25 senior healthcare bankers joined the firm. Five years later, Leerink Swann unveiled the Leerink Partners name for the first time, rebranding to the brand’s current name. Just one year after the rebranding, the company hired more senior bankers to oversee its expansion into specialty pharmaceuticals and services.
Leerink Partners continued its expansion by establishing a convertible capital markets business in 2016. In 2019, the company also entered the realm of alternative equities and ATM businesses. In the same year, the company temporarily rebranded as SVB Leerink after it was acquired by the New York-based holding company SVB Financial Group.
The company solidified its focus on the healthcare industry by hiring Barry Blake as Global Co-Head of Investment Banking with a focus on healthcare services and technology in 2021. In addition, it hired five more senior bankers to work on healthcare services. It also increased its presence in the field of financial sponsor and leveraged finance. In the same year, SVB Leerink’s parent company SVB rebranded it under the name SVB Securities.
Most recently, Jeff Leerink and his management team, along with funds managed by The Baupost Group, were able to buy out SVB Securities, once again rebranding the company to its familiar name, Leerink Partners. Today, the firm continues to fulfill its mission of providing helpful advice to clients in the healthcare industry in areas such as leveraged and private capital markets. It has worked with hundreds of companies in several different healthcare sectors, including biopharma, digital health and health tech, healthcare services, medical technology, and tools and diagnostics. Leerink Partners also serves investors by leveraging the team’s in-depth knowledge of equity research, institutional equities, and corporate access. If the company’s history is a good indicator of continued success, Leerink Partners looks poised to continue its growth as an independent investment bank for many more years to come.