Mumbai: Private equity firm InvAscent is preparing to list five portfolio companies across health and pharmaceuticals segments over the next 24–36 months, as the firms achieve scale, chairman and managing director Hari Buggana said in an interview.
These portfolio firms include drug companies Symbiotec Pharmalab Ltd and Malladi Drugs, women and child focused Ankura Hospital, healthcare devices business Accumax Lab Devices Pvt. Ltd, and digital healthtech platform MediBuddy, he said.
The public listing of these portfolio firms will open up exit opportunities for the healthcare and pharmaceuticals focused investor.
“An additional exit opportunity has opened up for us through the capital markets—this is a shift in our strategy. In the past, our exits have been to other financial investors or strategics,” Buggana said.
InvAscent is invested in these five portfolio firms from India Life Sciences Fund III, which was sized at around $350 million.
Buggana said that the portfolio firms should have scaled to ₹150 crore in Ebitda (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization) when they list—which is typically the expectation that capital market investors have for listed companies.
“We are seeing strong institutional investor interest in scaled healthcare delivery and pharmaceuticals assets in the capital markets. Many of these listed entities are trading at huge premiums, which is a reflection of demand and supply in this space,” Buggana said.
So far, InvAscent has exited by selling its stakes to larger PE firms or other companies.
In 2023, InvAscent exited at least five portfolio companies. It sold its stake in Oliva Skin & Hair Clinic and Oasis Fertility to Kedaara Capital, and disposed of its holding in Comprehensive Prosthetics and Orthotics (CPO) to other PE firms NorthCreek and Parkway Partners. It also sold its stake in Biorad Medisys back to the company promoters, and in Stericon Pharma to Nirma Group.
It has lined up other exits as well, including in Inventia Healthcare. Mint reported on 2 January that InvAscent is looking to exit its stake in Aizant Drugs, an asset which is likely to be looked at by larger PE firms. (https://t.ly/HV_Aq)
InvAscent has raised over $500 million across three funds. It has fully returned its first fund—sized at $107 million—back to its investors. “Our DPI (distributed paid-in capital) for Fund 2 is 1.5, with four investments yet to exit,” he said. DPI is the ratio of the capital returned to limited partners or investors compared to the contributions received. InvAscent’s second fund was sized at $146 million, which means the firm has so far returned $219 million to its investors.
InvAscent, which operates as InvAscent Advisory Services India LLP, has invested in over 35 companies across pharma, healthcare delivery, healthtech, medical devices, and animal health industries, according to its website. The PE firm is currently deploying from its fourth fund (India Life Sciences Fund IV). In December, it made twin investments through India Life Sciences Fund IV—investing in Hyderabad-based active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) firm Fleming Laboratories and in Bengaluru-based healthtech firm ABI Health Technologies Pvt. Ltd (ABI).
The public listing will open up exit opportunities for the healthcare-focused investor
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