MedPlus Health Services files Rs 1,639 cr IPO papers with Sebi

Pharmacy retail chain MedPlus Health Services has filed preliminary papers with capital markets regulator Sebi to raise Rs 1,639 crore through an initial share-sale.

The initial public offering (IPO) comprises fresh issuance of equity shares worth Rs 600 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of up to equity shares aggregating up to Rs 1,038.71 crore by promoter and existing shareholders, according to the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP).

The Offer for Sale comprises equity shares aggregating up to Rs 450 crore by Lone Furrow Investments, equity share aggregating up to Rs 500 crore by PI Opportunities Fund I and equity shares aggregating up to Rs 88.71 crore by other selling shareholders, consisting of certain entities and individual selling shareholders.

The offer will include a reservation of shares for employees of the company.

Proceeds of the fresh issue will be used for funding working capital requirements of the company's subsidiary, Optival.

MedPlus was founded in 2006 by Gangadi Madhukar Reddy, who is the company's managing director and chief executive officer.

The Hyderabad-based pharmacy retailer offers a wide range of products, including pharmaceutical and wellness products such as medicines, vitamins, medical devices and test kits, and FMCG products such as home and personal care products, including toiletries, baby care products, soaps and detergents and sanitizers.

Medplus was also the first pharmacy retailer in India to offer an omni-channel platform and continues to scale up its retail store network.

The company maintains a strong focus on scaling up its store network, having grown from operating initial 48 stores in Hyderabad at the conception of the business to operating India's second largest pharmacy retail network of over 2,000 stores distributed across Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Odisha, West Bengal and Maharashtra, as of March 31, 2021.

Axis Capital, Credit Suisse Securities (India), Nomura Financial Advisory and Securities (India) and Edelweiss Financial Services have been appointed as merchant bankers to advice the company on the IPO.

The equity shares are proposed to be listed on BSE and NSE.