KKR acquires stake in Gland Pharma for $ 200 million

KKR, a leading global investment firm, has acquire a minority stake in Gland Pharma Ltd, a leading Indian pure-play generic injectable pharmaceutical products company, for approximately $ 200 million. KKR has acquired the entire stake held by Evolvence India Life Sciences Fund (EILSF), an existing private equity investor in Gland Pharma.
 
Established in 1978 and based in Hyderabad, Gland Pharma develops and manufactures generic injectables primarily for the US market, and also for India and other semi-regulated markets. In 2003, Gland Pharma was the first company in India to get US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for pharmaceutical liquid injectable products. Gland Pharma has also pioneered pre-filled syringe technology in India and exports products in this format to the US market. Having pioneered Heparin technology in India, Gland Pharma has a strong position in the US market for that product through its marketing partner.
 
P V N Raju, Founder-Chairman, Gland Pharma, said, "Gland Pharma is at an important juncture in its evolution where we have proven our sterile manufacturing capabilities, established ourselves as a high-quality manufacturer of complicated injectables products and achieved a track-record of strong financial performance. Our partnership with KKR will help us in our next phase of growth as we look to materially expand our manufacturing capacities and invest more in our development work with the goal of expanding our product registrations."
 
Commenting on the agreement, Sanjay Nayar, Chief Executive, KKR India, said, “Gland Pharma has a track record of strong financial performance as well as long-standing relationships with Indian and international pharmaceutical companies and we believe there is significant potential for it to grow these partnerships even further."
 
KKR's investment in Gland Pharma represents its fourth announced investment from the KKR Asian II Fund and its second overall private equity investment in India in 2013. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.