Ahmedabad-based pharmaceutical company Corona Remedies Pvt Ltd, backed by private equity firm ChrysCapital, outbid several contenders to acquire seven brands from German pharma major Bayer Pharmaceuticals Pvt Ltd, VCCircle has learnt.
IPO-bound Corona Remedies, which focuses on women’s healthcare, cardiology, pain management, urology, and other therapeutic areas, said the deal will strengthen its position in these segments.
As part of the transaction, Noklot, a cardiology brand, will come under Corona, marking its foray into the Rs 1,507-crore ($175-million) anti-platelet market. Other acquired brands–Fostine, Luprofact, Menodac, Ovidac, Spye, and Vageston–will enhance its women’s healthcare portfolio, it said in a statement.
GCV Life advised the multinational company on the transaction.
Corona Remedies, which plans to strengthen its women's healthcare portfolio with infertility treatment and pregnancy management-related pharmaceutical segments, outbid five other players to acquire Bayer’s brands, a person familiar with the matter told VCCircle.
Bayer sold the brands as these no longer align with its core pharmaceutical strategy of focusing on patented products globally, the person added.
According to VCCEdge, Corona Remedies’ net sales jumped 43% in FY23 to Rs 884 crore, while net profit rebounded to Rs 84.7 crore from a loss the previous year.
In May, the company filed draft papers for an IPO with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The IPO will entirely be an offer for sale of Rs 800 crore.
In 2021, ChrysCapital acquired a 27% stake for an undisclosed amount in Corona Remedies in a secondary transaction, enabling an exit for private equity firm Creador. Creador, which sold its entire stake at a 4x gain on its original investment, fetched a 35% internal rate of return (IRR). It had picked up a minority stake in Corona Remedies for Rs 118 crore in July 2016.
