Arthur Higgins Joins Blackstone’s Healthcare Team

New York– The Blackstone Group (NYSE: BX) today announced that Arthur J. Higgins, former Chairman of the Board of Management of Bayer HealthCare AG, has joined the firm’s dedicated healthcare group, Blackstone Healthcare Partners.

At Blackstone, Mr. Higgins will join health care veterans Lodewijk de Vink and Doug Rogers in providing industry knowledge and expertise to private equity transactions. Blackstone Healthcare Partners is an integral part of the firm’s global effort in sourcing, analyzing and overseeing investments in pharmaceuticals and medical products. Blackstone Healthcare Group’s investments include Nycomed, Gerresheimer, Stiefel Laboratories, and Catalent.

Tony James, President and COO of Blackstone, said “With the addition of Arthur Higgins we have further strengthened Blackstone Healthcare Partners. They offer a unique value to companies wishing to access focused industry expertise of this group of leading healthcare stars along with capital to fund growth.”

Mr. Higgins had been Chairman of the Bayer HealthCare Executive Committee since July 1, 2004, and Chairman of the Board of Management of Bayer HealthCare AG since January 1, 2006. During his tenure at Bayer, Mr. Higgins led the restructuring and strengthening of Bayer HealthCare including the acquisition and integration of Schering AG and the over-the-counter medicines business of Roche.

Mr. Higgins started his career in 1978 in Britain with Bristol-Myers. He subsequently worked for Sandoz (1979 to 1984) and Fisons (1984 to 1987) before moving to Abbott Laboratories in the USA (1987 to 2001), where he held positions of increasing responsibility in the international and domestic divisions, including a two-year posting in Germany. He was appointed President of the Pharmaceutical Products Division in Chicago in 1998. In this position, he was in charge of Abbott’s pharmaceuticals business in the U.S. with responsibility for global pharmaceutical research and development.

In 2001, Mr. Higgins was appointed Chairman and CEO of Enzon Pharmaceuticals headquartered in Bridgewater, N.J. In this function, he also served as Chairman of the Biotech Council of New Jersey and on the board of the U.S. National Pharmaceutical Council.

Mr. Higgins has been a member of the Executive Committee of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), a member of the Executive Council of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA), and President of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industry Association (EFPIA).  He is a member of the Board of Directors of Zimmer Inc, Eco Labs and Resverlogix Corp.

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Blackstone is one of the world’s leading investment and advisory firms. We seek to create positive economic impact and long-term value for our investors, the companies we invest in, the companies we advise and the broader global economy. We do this through the commitment of our extraordinary people and flexible capital. Our alternative asset management businesses include the management of private equity funds, real estate funds, funds of hedge funds, credit-oriented funds, collateralized loan obligation vehicles (CLOs) and closed-end mutual funds. The Blackstone Group also provides various financial advisory services, including financial and strategic advisory, restructuring and reorganization advisory and fund placement services. Further information is available at www.blackstone.com.

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