Biosimilars global market to provide promising opportunity for select domestic pharma firms: Icra

The biosimilars global market is on the cusp of exceptional growth and presents attractive opportunities for select domestic pharmaceutical companies in the years to come, according to rating agency Icra.

The biosimilars global market, which stood at USD 5.9 billion in the calendar year 2018, is expected to grow to USD 23.6 billion by 2023, backed by several biologicals losing patent protection globally, Icra Research said in a statement.

Select Indian pharma companies with strong research and development capabilities will be in a position to exploit these opportunities in the key markets of USA, Europe and "Rest of the World" (ROW), it added.

"ICRA believes that only select Indian companies based on joint development model with MNC Generics will be able to successfully launch several biosimilars over the next 3-5 years," Icra Corporate Ratings Vice-President Gaurav Jain said.

Economies of scale in manufacturing and ability to allocate adequate R&D resources on product development would be key differentiators going forward, he added.

"This will be credit positive for such select successful players though at an aggregate sector level, it is unlikely to materially impact credit profile owing to limited participation from Indian players," Jain said.

While only a few Indian companies have been able to launch biosimilars in developed markets of the US and Europe, ROW has seen much better participation, he added.

A biosimilar medicine is a biological medicine that is similar to another biological medicine that has already been authorised for use.