Mukesh Ambani owned Reliance Industries (RIL) on Tuesday announced that its subsidiary Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL) has acquired a majority equity stake in Netmeds (Vitalic Health Pvt Ltd) for a cash consideration of approximately Rs 620 crore.
This investment represents 60 per cent holding in the equity share capital of Vitalic and 100 per cent direct equity ownership of its subsidiaries - Tresara Health Private Limited, Netmeds Market Place Limited and Dadha Pharma Distribution Pvt Limited, a late evening statement by RIL said.
RIL's acquisition comes at a time when arch rival Amazon has just started selling pharmaceutical products in Bangalore markets.
Incorporated in 2015, Vitalic and its subsidiaries are in the business of pharma distribution, sales, and business support services. Its subsidiary also runs an online pharmacy platform – Netmeds – to connect customers to pharmacists and enable door step delivery of medicines, nutritional health and wellness products.
"This investment is aligned with our commitment to provide digital access for everyone in India. The addition of Netmeds enhances Reliance Retail’s ability to provide good quality and affordable health care products and services, and also broadens its digital commerce proposition to include most daily essential needs of consumers. We are impressed by Netmeds’ journey to build a nationwide digital franchise in such a short time and are confident of accelerating it with our investment and partnership," Isha Ambani, Director, RRVL, said.
Pradeep Dadha, Founder & CEO, Netmeds, said, “It is indeed a proud moment for “Netmeds” to join Reliance family and work together to make quality healthcare affordable and accessible to every Indian. With the combined strength of the group’s digital, retail and tech platforms, we will strive to create more value for everyone in the ecosystem, while providing a superior Omni Channel experience to consumers.”