DHL Supply Chain CEO Oscar de Bok (left) and Cryoport CEO Jerrell Shelton at the acquisition announcement. (DHL Group via X)
DHL Group acquired white-glove logistics specialist Cryopdp from Nashville, Tenn.-based Cryoport for an undisclosed sum. Cryopdp specializes in logistics for clinical trials, biopharma, and cell and gene therapies.
Headquartered just outside Paris, Cryopdp handles more than 600,000 shipments per year, with customers and patients in over 135 countries.
DHL said the acquisition would enhance its capabilities in the specialty pharmaceuticals logistics arena and support the company’s strategy of becoming a leader in life science and health care logistics by 2030.
Part of this will involve integrating Cryopdp with the capabilities of DHL Express and DHL Global Forwarding.
“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 and gene therapies, in addition to further increasing our footprint in the conventional pharma and life science health care segment,” DHL Supply Chain CEO Oscar de Bok said.
DHL Group acquires CRYOPDP from Cryoport to strengthen “DHL Health Logistics”. https://t.co/VL8v3Dax3O
— DHL Group (@DHLGlobal) March 31, 2025
DHL Supply Chain ranks No. 14 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest logistics companies in North America and No. 5 on the TT Top 50 Global Freight list.
Meantime, DHL and Cryoport also announced a partnership aimed at providing improved supply chains in the global life sciences and health care sector.
“Working together, we will bring an enhanced set of supply chain solutions to meet companies’ and patients’ critical supply chain needs,” Cryoport CEO Jerrell Shelton said.
The partnership will allow Cryoport to expand its operations in the Asia Pacific region and in Europe, Middle East and Africa, he added.
Cryopdp handles more than 600,000 shipments per year, with customers and patients in over 135 countries. (DHL Group)
DHL’s existing life sciences and health care business contributed more than $5 billion in global revenue in 2024.
Global logistics giants, such as DHL and rivals UPS Inc. and FedEx Corp., are targeting growth in the higher-margin life sciences shipping segment.
In January, UPS completed the acquisition of Germany’s Frigo-Trans and sister company BPL, which was announced in September 2024.
Frigo-Trans’ network includes temperature-controlled warehousing that covers six temperature zones from cryopreservation to ambient; pan-European cold chain transportation services; and temperature-controlled and time-critical freight forwarding capabilities.
Atlanta-based UPS ranks No. 1 on the for-hire TT100, and UPS Supply Chain Solutions is No. 4 on the logistics TT100.
Carere
FedEx Chief Customer Officer Brie Carere, meanwhile, said during a Dec. 19 earnings call that health care was its priority business-to-business vertical, with the company targeting growth outside the U.S. in particular.
Carere said during a March 20 earnings call that FedEx would be onboarding nearly $400 million in new annualized health care revenue over the following 90 days and end its fiscal 2025 with about $9 billion in health care revenue.
FedEx ranks No. 2 on the for-hire TT100, No. 2 on the TT Top 50 global freight list and No. 34 on the logistics TT100.
