Vaccine developer Bharat Biotech International Ltd is exploring to raise over $500 million through an initial public offering, according to a Bloomberg report citing people familiar with the matter.
Discussions are still in progress, and the specifics of the deal, such as its size and timing, might be changed, people said, asking not to be identified to discuss a private matter.
Livemint could not independently verify the report.
Founded in 1996, Bharat Biotech claimed to have distributed over 9 billion vaccines globally, the report said. Its portfolio includes vaccines for Covid-19 and hepatitis B, along with treatments for burns and diarrhoea.
The company, along with Serum Institute of India, is primarily known for manufacturing billions of vaccine doses for Indians and for supplying them to more than 100 countries during the first few waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin was indigenously developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) – National Institute of Virology .
The latest development comes months after the Hyderabad-based vaccine maker signed a Technology Transfer Agreement with Biofabri, a part of Spain’s Zendal group, for tuberculosis vaccines. The agreement aims to advance global access for MTBVAC, one of the two vaccine candidates that have progressed into advanced clinical development for Tuberculosis, according to a statement.
Under the agreement, Bharat Biotech commits to producing and supplying MTBVAC to over 70 countries in Africa and Southeast Asia, areas significantly affected by the disease.
Last year, Biovet, a Bharat Biotech group company, received a licence from the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) for its lumpy skin disease (LSD) vaccine for dairy cattle.
The company claimed that it is the first such vaccine in the world for the highly infectious viral disease that affects cattle, Mint reported earlier. The vaccine named Biolumpivaxin was developed in collaboration with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).
About Bharat Biotech
Headquartered in Genome Valley, Hyderabad, Bharat Biotech manufactures vaccines and biopharmaceuticals to combat infectious diseases.
The company has more than 145 global patents, a product portfolio of more than 19 vaccines and 4 biotherapeutics, registrations in more than 125 countries, and World Health Organisation (WHO) pre-qualification, according to Bharat Biotech’s website.
It has delivered more than nine billion doses of vaccines worldwide, and has developed vaccines for influenza H1N1, Rotavirus, Japanese Encephalitis, Rabies, Cholera, Chikungunya, Zika, and the world’s first tetanus-toxoid conjugated vaccine for Typhoid.
(With inputs from Bloomberg.)
