Lupin to divest entire stake in Kyowa for over Rs 3,702 cr

Drug major Lupin on Monday said its board has approved selling its entire stake in Japanese subsidiary Kyowa Pharmaceutical Industry to Japan-based private equity fund Unison Capital Partners for an enterprise value of JPY 57,361 million (Rs 3,702.4 crore).

The Mumbai-based company has entered into a definitive agreement for sale of its entire stake (99.82 per cent) in Kyowa, Lupin said in a statement.

Under the terms of agreement, Lupin's subsidiary Nanomi BV will divest its entire stake in Kyowa to Unison's entity Plutus Ltd for an enterprise value of JPY 57,361, it added.

"This transaction is aligned with our vision to focus on our key markets and strategic priorities to achieve sustainable growth in the mid to long-term," Lupin CEO Vinita Gupta said.

The deal proceeds will be utilised to strengthen company's balance sheet as well as provide growth capital to support organic and inorganic initiatives for our focus markets, she added.

As per the company, the deal would help reduce its net debt to Rs 1,129 crore as compared with Rs 4,361.8 crore as on September 30, 2019.

"We believe that the partnership with Unison will enable Kyowa to leverage its strong platform and human capital to achieve its full potential. We remain committed to advancing our complex generics, biosimilars and specialty portfolio globally, including Japan," Lupin Managing Director Nilesh Gupta said.

Lupin had acquired Kyowa in 2007.

Commenting on the deal, Unison Founding Partner Tatsuya Hayashi said: "We look forward to actively working with Kyowa to leverage our unique set of resources in the healthcare market including our own portfolio companies, and our network of experienced healthcare advisors and strategic partners to enable Kyowa's vision of growth."