Mankind Pharma frontrunner to acquire Bharat Serums in $1.5 bn deal

By Baiju Kalesh and Preeti Singh

Mankind Pharma Ltd. is emerging as the frontrunner to acquire Bharat Serums & Vaccines Ltd. in a deal that could value the target company at around $1.5 billion, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
 

Mankind Pharma, which has brands including Manforce Condoms and Prega News pregnancy tests, is in advanced talks to buy a controlling stake in Bharat Serums from Advent International, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing private information. An announcement could come as soon as the next few weeks, they said.

Private equity firm Advent, which acquired a majority stake in Bharat Serums in 2019, is looking to exit and return liquidity to investors, the people said. 

Deliberations are ongoing and talks could fall apart or another buyer may emerge, they said. Representatives for Advent and Bharat Serums declined to comment. Mankind Pharma didn’t respond to requests for comment. 

Mankind Pharma rose as much as 1.2 per cent following Thursday’s Bloomberg News report. The shares are up about 6.5 per cent this year and 10 per cent in the past 12 months.  

Founded in 1971, biopharmaceutical company Bharat Serums has a research and development center in Mumbai with over 100 scientists and operations that cover more than 70 countries, as well as subsidiaries in Germany, the Philippines and the US, according to its website.