DHL Group has acquired 100% of specialist pharma courier CRYOPDP from Cryoport and signed a strategic partnership with Cryoport to strengthen supply chain service offerings for the global life sciences and healthcare sector.
CRYOPDP specialises in providing white-glove logistics services for clinical trials, biopharma, and cell & gene therapies. With operations in 15 countries, CRYOPDP handles over 600,000 shipments per year, serving customers and patients in over 135 countries worldwide.
The acquisition is expected to help strengthen DHL Group’s established life sciences and healthcare business, which generated over €5bn in global revenue in 2024.
DHL Supply Chain now aims to further build the potential of its pharma specialised network solution by leveraging the specialty courier expertise of CRYOPDP and the global air capabilities of DHL Express and DHL Global Forwarding.
The acquisition aligns with DHL Group’s Strategy 2030, which emphasises the importance of temperature-controlled networks, first and last mile specialty courier coverage and integrated solutions.
Additionally, the strategic partnership with Cryoport will bring together DHL’s global health logistics capabilities with Cryoport’s expertise in providing specialised solutions in a fast-growing life science and healthcare market segment.
It also deepens DHL’s relationship with all the Cryoport business units with respect to specialized pharma, said DHL.
For Cryoport, the partnership with DHL will enable it to better execute its business in EMEA and APAC with a stronger focus on its core business in these regions, creating even greater opportunities to offer highly targeted, top-tier services in answering market demand for its services and products.
Oscar de Bok, chief executive of DHL Supply Chain, stated: “The acquisition of CRYOPDP is a pivotal move for our supply chain business as we aim to expand our Pharma Specialized Network to meet the evolving needs of clinical trials, biopharma and cell & gene therapies, in addition to further increasing our footprint in the conventional pharma and life science healthcare segment.
"The acquisition of CRYOPDP and the extended partnership with Cryoport Inc. will enable us to deliver integrated end-to-end solutions, enhancing our service capabilities.”
Jerrell Shelton, chief executive of Cryoport, commented: “We are indeed pleased to build on our trusted relationship with the DHL Group. Working together we will bring an enhanced set of supply chain solutions to meet companies’ and patients’ critical supply chain needs.
"This strategic partnership taps into the strong expertise of DHL’s Supply Chain and CRYOPDP, presenting a substantial opportunity for Cryoport to further expand its reach to global growth markets such as Asia Pacific (APAC) and Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA).”
The deal and the outlined partnership are subject to regulatory approvals.
