India-based Gland Pharma has announced an agreement under which KKR, a global investment firm, will acquire a minority stake in the company for approximately $200m, including KKR’s acquisition of the entire stake held by Evolvence India Life Sciences Fund (EILSF), an existing private equity investor in Gland Pharma.
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.
Gland Pharma founder-chairman P V N Raju noted the company is at an important juncture in its evolution where it has proven its sterile manufacturing capabilities, established itself 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.
"We thank the Vetter family of Ravensburg, Germany, who are investors in Gland Pharma, for inspiring Gland Pharma in the niche field of pre-filled syringes. Vetter Pharma, owned by the Vetter family, enjoys a pre-eminent position globally in the field of pre-filled syringe technology," Raju added.
KKR India chief executive Sanjay Nayar noted Gland Pharma has a track record of strong financial performance as well as long-standing relationships with Indian and international pharmaceutical companies and KKR believes there is significant potential for it to grow these partnerships even further.
"We are excited to invest behind a high-quality promoter family and management team led by Dr. Ravi. We look forward to working closely with them to help build out the business and create value for all stakeholders," Nayar added.
