Avesthagen has revived its plans for an IPO and is planning to raise about Rs 600-700 crore from the domestic and international markets. The funding will be used to commercialize 40 products which are in various stages of development. Having initially announced the IPO last year, the company had to postpone the plans after markets fell due to global meltdown.
Dr Villoo Morawala-Patell, Founder and CMD, Avesthagen said," the IPO is slated to coincide with the time that our biosimilars are ready to hit the market place. From an investment perspective, I believe mid 2010 will see a global turnaround and a good business environment such that all our stakeholders will benefit from investing in the company."
The company, which currently holds 560 patents will be valued based on its patent and product portfolios. The company, which is expected to touch a turnover of Rs 100 crore this fiscal, is yet to decide on the bankers and would like to hold on to the promoter stake, which is currently at 32 per cent while PE players hold up to 28 per cent. PE investors include ICICI Ventures, Fidelity and New York Life Investment Management India Fund.
Each of Avesthagen's four strategic business units are expected to run as independent profit centres with dedicated management teams. Avesthagen Ltd has many products in the pipeline that need to be monetized and brought to the consumer. The company is poised for rapid growth post-funding. Recently, the company cleared one mammalian biosimilar monoclonal antibody product by the regulatory agency in India for clinical trials, and three other biopharma products have entered pre-clinicals.