MUMBAI : InvAscent, the firm that manages India Life Sciences Fund, is expecting binding bids for its stake in the Hyderabad-based Aizant Drug Research Solutions Pvt. Ltd early next month.
The deal, which has been in the works for more than a year-and-a-half, will see the healthcare-focused private equity (PE) firm sell a controlling stake in the company together with the promoters, three people with knowledge of the development said.
Mint was the first to report in January 2024 InvAscent's interest in selling a controlling stake in the drug developer in a deal that could value the company at around $350-400 million.
"The deal is in fairly advanced stage. The binding bids are due in another fortnight. Some PE firms and strategics have shown interest," the first of the three persons cited earlier said, all of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity. The person did not identify the potential buyers.
Global investment bank Rothschild is helping the founders and the investor to sell their controlling stake.
In 2017, InvAscent invested $18 million through its India Life Sciences Fund II in Aizant when it bought stake from private equity fund Zephyr Peacock. InvAscent currently owns around 38.02% stake in Aizant, according to VCCEdge.
Founded in 2008 by Dr. Rudraraju Varma and his family members, Aizant isan integrated provider of drug development services. It formulates finished dosages with a proprietary portfolio of specialty generics. The company provides contract research services with a focus on new drug delivery systems and conducts clinical trials on behalf of its clients. It has a research laboratory and clinical trial facility in Hyderabad. Aizant's manufacturing and clinical facilities are approved by regulators in the US, Canada, Europe, Brazil, Russia, China, Australia and Africa, InvAscent's website shows.
"The promoters are likely to retain a minority stake and will continue to be involved in running the show in the near term," a second person said.
Queries emailed to spokespersons of Aizant and Rothschild did not elicit any response. A spokesperson for InvAscent declined to comment.
India's drug contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) market is expected to grow from $7 billion to $14 billion by 2028, capturing around 4-5% of the global market, a February 2025 report by BCG shows. This surge, says the report, will be driven by India's strong position in Active Pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and generic drug manufacturing, along with cost advantages over China.
According to a June 23 ratings release by Crisil, Aizant earned ₹291.93 crore in operating income in FY25, higher than ₹282.10 crore in FY24. It made a net profit of ₹53.78 crore as against ₹47.87 crore in FY24.
InvAscent is the investment advisor to a family of funds that operate under the name India Life Sciences Fund or ILSF. It has so far raised around $500 million from global investors across three funds and deployed the same in 35 companies across pharma, healthcare delivery, healthtech, medical devices, and animal health industries. It is currently deploying from its fourth fund (India Life Sciences Fund IV). In 2023, it made four investments and exited five portfolio companies during the year.
According to the Crisil report, Aizant has low reliance on external capital to fund its operations, and as on March 31, 2025 its net worth was large at ₹241 crore. Debt protection metrics were robust, meaning it could meet its debt obligations easily,and the metrics are expected to sustain at similar levels over the medium term.
However, it also noted that the competitive landscape in the CDMO segment had become tougher. "The pharmaceuticals industry has many unorganised players due to low entry barrier, which limits pricing flexibility and bargaining power. Also, the threat from large integrated players in the form of capacity addition limits growth," Crisil said.