Officer's Choice whisky maker Allied Blenders files IPO papers with Sebi

Allied Blenders and Distillers Ltd, the maker of Officer's Choice Whisky, has refiled preliminary papers with the capital markets regulator Sebi to raise Rs 1,500 crore through an Initial Public Offering (IPO).

The initial share sale comprises fresh issuance of equity shares worth Rs 1,000 crore and an Offer-For-Sale (OFS) of shares to the tune of Rs 500 crore by promoters, draft papers file with Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) showed on Thursday.

As a part of the OFS, Bina Kishore Chhabria, Resham Chhabria, Jeetendra Hemdev and Neesha Kishore Chhabria will sell shares.

Out of the total proceeds from the fresh issue, Rs 720 crore will be used for the payment of debt, besides a portion will be used for general corporate purposes.

As of December 2023, the company had a debt of around Rs 808 crore, according to the draft papers.

With a market share of 8.2 per cent in Indian-Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) in fiscal 2023, Allied Blenders and Distillers had earlier filed draft papers with Sebi in June 2022 for Rs 2,000 crore IPO.

The company got Sebi's approval in December that year to float the maiden public issue but did not proceed with the launch.

Allied Blenders and Distillers is engaged in the manufacturing, marketing and sale of alcoholic beverages in India and abroad.

The product portfolio of the firm comprises several brands of Indian-Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) across whisky, brandy, rum and vodka.

Some of the major brands of the company include Officer's Choice Whisky, Sterling Reserve Whisky, Jolly Roger Rum and Class 21 Vodka.

ICICI Securities, ITI Capital and Nuvama Wealth Management are the book running managers and will advise the company's on the maiden public issue.