By IANS,
Bangalore : Leading biotechnology firm Avesthagen plans to raise about Rs.6-7 billion (Rs.600-700 crore) through an initial public issue (IPO) for rolling out about 40 products which are still in development stage, a top company official said Tuesday.
“We will go for a public issue next year when our biosimilars (bio-pharmaceutical products) are ready to hit the market. We see a global turnaround taking place by mid-2010 from an investment perspective,” Avesthagen founder-chairman and managing director Villoo Morawala-Patell said in a statement here.
The nine-year-old company’s valuation for the fixing the issue price will be based on its patents and product portfolios.
It holds 560 patents and has projected a sales turnover of Rs.1 billion (Rs.100 crore) for this fiscal (2009-10).
As chief promoter, Morawala-Patell has 32 percent share in the company’s equity, with private equity investors such as ICICI Ventures, Fidelity and New York Life Investment Management India Fund holding 28 percent and the rest (40 percent) with minority investors, including high net-worth individuals through private placement.
The company withdrew its draft prospectus for the IPO in November 2008 after the global financial crisis rocked the investment climate the world over.
“Our four strategic business units will be run as independent profit centres with dedicated teams. We also plan to monetise products, which are in the pipeline, by launching them in the market. With an integrated systems biology platform, Avesthagen focuses on achieving convergence of food, pharma and population genetics for predictive, preventive and personalised healthcare.