Pratia expands into Turkey through Atlas acquisition

Strategic investment into Atlas strengthens access to clinical trials and Research Sites in the market estimated to be worth over USD 520m.

Pratia, part of Humaneva Group, today announced the majority investment into Atlas, one of Turkey’s leading providers of services supporting clinical trials across the country. This investment marks the entry of Pratia into the Turkish market.

Founded in 2002 in Istanbul, Atlas provides what Pratia describes as Site Service Provision across Turkey, a model based on deploying highly qualified Study Coordinators and other specialized clinical research personnel to support multicenter studies across over 19 therapeutic areas, including oncology, cardiology, and neurology. As one of the largest companies in this sector in Turkey, Atlas has more than 240 field staff, delivering fast, flexible operational support tailored to sponsor needs. Oncology represents Atlas’ largest area of experience, complementing Pratia’s global focus on this therapeutic area, which accounts for more than 30% of Pratia’s clinical trial portfolio.

Turkey represents a rapidly growing market for clinical research. With a population exceeding 85 million, industry data reported in the IQVIA Turkey Pharmaceutical Sector Report 2024 (IQVIA Türkiye ilaç sektörü raporu 2024) show clinical research investment reaching approximately USD 425 million in 2023, while more recent estimates from the Association of Research-Based Pharmaceutical Companies indicate investment exceeded USD 520 million in 2024. The market offers considerable potential to expand access to studies for Patients and further develop research infrastructure across the country.

“We are proud to welcome Atlas to Pratia network. Th experienced Atlas team enables us to extend our patient-focused approach and data-driven operations into a promising new market – said Łukasz Bęczkowski, CEO of Pratia. “By combining Atlas’ expertise in Site Services Provision across multiple therapeutic areas with Pratia’s global reach and oncology experience, we plan to expand patients’ access to clinical trials in Turkey.”

Ali Eren Bahali, General Manager of Atlas, added: “Seeing Pratia’s robust growth since 2012 and its commitment to strengthening clinical research infrastructure, we are excited to begin this collaboration. For over 20 years, the Atlas team has built trusted partnerships throughout the country by delivering flexible high-quality solutions tailored to the needs of sponsors and research sites. Together with Pratia, we look forward to further strengthening our role in supporting clinical trials across Turkey.”

With its recent expansion in the U.S. and its 2025 entry into Slovakia, Pratia now operates across several countries, including: Poland, Czechia, Bulgaria, Germany and Spain. Łukasz Bęczkowski added: “We warmly welcome our new Turkish colleagues and clients and look forward to building strong partnerships across the region.”

Photo: Jakub Grabowski (Pratia), Nebil Basalak (Atlas) and Łukasz Bęczkowski (Pratia)