ChrysCapital, two others launch open offer for Novartis India

Mumbai: A consortium of WaveRise Investments, ChrysCapital and Two Infinity Partners have announced an open offer to acquire up to 26% of the voting share capital of Novartis India (NIL) at Rs 860.6 per equity share, amounting to about Rs 552.5 crore, according to a notice to the stock exchanges on Friday.

The deal is a part of Swiss drug maker Novartis's move to sell its entire 70.68% stake in Novartis India for Rs 1,446 crore to the consortium, with private equity firm ChrysCapital acquiring a controlling stake. "Novartis has entered into an agreement with the ChrysCapital group ("ChrysCapital"), one of the largest private equity firms investing in India, to transfer its 70.68% shareholding in NIL," the company said in a press release.

The divestment follows a strategic review announced and conducted by Novartis starting February 2024. "The closing of the transaction is subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions precedent and is expected to close in Q3 2026," the statement noted.


"Upon completion of this transfer of shares, Novartis will complete its transformation into a pure-play innovative medicines company and continues to adapt its footprint for efficient, sustainable long-term growth aligned with its global strategy," it noted. However, Novartis will continue its presence in India through Novartis Healthcare (NHPL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Novartis group in India. NHPL includes the commercial arm of Novartis in India, the Novartis Corporate Center in Hyderabad, and R&D teams, which currently conduct clinical trials at more than 300 trial sites in the country.

"Aligned with our global strategy, we are expanding our innovative cardio renal metabolic and oncology portfolio, marked by recent launches and a strong pipeline of innovative medicines for India," the company noted.

The stake sale comes at a time when the India unit has been witnessing decline in sales.

According to data from market tracker PharmaTrac, in terms of 12 months sales value the company has seen gradual decline from Rs 655 crore at the end of December 2022 to Rs 493 crore at the end of 12 months to December 2025.