Japan-based pharmaceutical company Shionogi & Co. has launched its new European headquarters in London, to be called Shionogi Limited.

The new headquarters is part of the company’s five year business plan to expand its business world wide. Shionogi elected to base their European headquarters in London following an extensive review of potential locations on the continent as well as within the U.K. London was chosen by Shionogi because of the good business infrastructure and support, the pool of exceptional talent, a favorable living environment for their employees and easy access to the rest of Europe.

“We are delighted to be launching our new European headquarters in London,” said Takashi Takenoshita, CEO of Shionogi Europe. “We aim to achieve our mission as a company with a strong presence in Europe, which conducts business operations recognized by patients, their families, healthcare providers and broader communities.”

The mayor of London, Boris Johnson, added, “Boosting jobs and growth is my number one priority, and this means attracting ever more companies to the capital. Shionogi will make a fantastic addition to London's growing life sciences sector, which benefits from our top class universities and research centers, direct access to huge markets, a skilled cosmopolitan workforce and fantastic connectivity.”

The company plans to quickly expand the number of employees in London and has recently made several key appointments: Dr. Marco Renoldi, Dr. Suhail Nurbhai, Dr. Mark Sampson, Nina Strenitz and Joe Gaugas.

Dating back to 1878, Shionogi has been involved in research, development, manufacturing and marketing activities for over 130 years. In 1998 Shionogi licensed one of its new molecules that later became Crestorto AstraZeneca and still markets this drug in Japan today. Currently the company has a strong strategic focus on infectious diseases, pain and metabolic syndrome.