Lupin eyes next US growth pillar in complex generics and biosimilars

Nearly six decades after its founding, Lupin is targeting its next global growth phase in the US with a strategy centred on complex generics, biosimilars and innovation

A chemistry professor and business are two elements that rarely react easily. Yet, nearly six decades ago, Desh Bandhu Gupta stepped into uncertain territory with his pharma company, Lupin: a name that was fashioned from the medicinal plant known for its environmental benefits.

 

Today, Lupin has grown into one of India’s largest pharmaceutical companies, with a significant global footprint spanning the US, Europe, Japan, and emerging markets. As the company reflects on the life of its founder, Desh Bandhu Gupta, popularly known as DBG, the next generation of leadership is preparing to guide Lupin into its next phase of global growth, focused on complex generics, biosimilars, and innovation in the US market, more than two decades after its entry into the US generics space.

 

In an interaction with Business Standard last week, days after the launch of the book ‘Made in India’, based on DBG’s life, Lupin Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Vinita Gupta and Managing Director Nilesh Gupta said the company is positioning itself for the next wave of expansion in the US while also strengthening its presence in India across chronic therapies and biosimilars.

 

Carrying forward a scientific legacy

 

For the Gupta siblings, Lupin’s current strategy is inseparable from their father’s legacy. DBG built the company by aligning science with large public health needs. Lupin initially focused on tuberculosis medicines, developing a vertically integrated model that combined active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) with finished formulations.

 

That “muscle memory”, as Vinita describes it, later helped Lupin expand globally. “When we entered regulated markets such as the US, we leveraged the same model, having our own API capabilities along with finished dosages. It gave us flexibility and reliability in the supply chain, which helped us build our position in the generics market,” she said.

 

Lupin entered the US generics market in the late 1990s, when Indian drugmakers were beginning to establish themselves in regulated markets. Since then, the US has become the company’s largest international segment.

 

Lupin’s revenue from the US rose from about ₹2,046 crore in FY11 to ₹7,724 crore in FY25, while its overall revenue nearly quadrupled over the same period to ₹22,708 crore, according to Capitaline data.

 

Moving beyond traditional generics

 

However, the global generics market has become increasingly competitive, with intense price erosion in simpler drugs. That has pushed companies such as Lupin to invest in more complex product categories.

 

The company is now focusing on complex generics such as inhalation therapies, injectables, and biosimilars segments that require deeper technological expertise and face fewer competitors.

 

Respiratory therapies already represent Lupin’s largest global therapeutic area, supported by products such as tiotropium and albuterol. Going forward, biosimilars are expected to become another key growth pillar.

 

“We plan to launch five biosimilars globally over the next five years,” Vinita said, adding that the company will target major markets including the US, Europe, and Japan.

 

The opportunity is significant, with several large biologic medicines expected to lose patent protection over the coming decade, opening the door to biosimilar competition. Lupin is developing products across therapy areas such as oncology, ophthalmology, and immunology, including molecules such as pegfilgrastim, ranibizumab, and etanercept.

 

A renewed India strategy

 

While the US remains a key growth driver, Lupin is also sharpening its strategy in the domestic market, particularly in chronic therapies such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and respiratory conditions.

 

This aligns with a broader shift in India’s pharmaceutical demand, which is moving from acute infections to long-term lifestyle diseases, creating new opportunities for companies with strong chronic portfolios.

 

“We are already a large cardiometabolic player in India. As newer therapies emerge, we expect to play a meaningful role in those segments as well,” Nilesh said.

 

One such opportunity lies in obesity and metabolic treatments, including GLP-1-based therapies that are drawing global attention. Lupin expects the segment to become highly competitive once patents expire, but believes its strong physician relationships and established presence in chronic therapies will help it capture market share.

 

The company is also exploring a broader ecosystem approach to chronic disease management through Lupin Digital Health, which offers digital tools to help manage conditions such as cardiovascular and metabolic disorders. Over time, the platform could support more integrated treatment approaches that combine medicines with digital monitoring and patient support.

 

Lupin is also building a separate biosimilars portfolio for the Indian market, aiming to improve affordability and access to complex biologic therapies that remain underpenetrated.

 

Supporting this shift is Lupin’s sustained investment in research and development. The company spends around eight per cent of its revenue on R&D, among the highest levels in India’s pharmaceutical sector.

 

More than two-thirds of that spending is already directed towards complex generics and biologics, with management indicating that the share could rise further as the company gradually expands into innovation-led research.

 

“We have always believed in building capabilities step by step. The skills we built for generics helped us move into complex generics. Over time, those capabilities can also support innovation,” Nilesh said.

 

Chasing unmet medical needs

 

That focus on solving difficult problems, something DBG constantly encouraged, is likely to remain central to Lupin’s strategy.

 

Rather than pursuing every opportunity, the company is concentrating on areas where it can be among the early entrants. Respiratory medicines, biosimilars, and complex injectables are examples of such niches.

 

“We enjoy solving difficult problems. If 30 companies can already do something, there’s little value in being the 31st. It’s more meaningful to focus on areas where patients still lack access,” Nilesh said. 

 

What began with a chemistry professor’s curiosity about the pharmaceutical industry still shapes Lupin’s ethos. Nearly six decades later, the company continues to combine science and enterprise as it looks to help define the next phase of global pharmaceuticals, in India and beyond.