Suven Pharma, Cohance Lifesciences announce merger

Suven Pharmaceuticals Limited on February 29 announced a proposed scheme of amalgamation for the merger of Cohance Lifesciences Limited with Suven.

The overall transaction is expected to conclude over next the 12-15 months subject to receipt of all relevant shareholder and regulatory approvals, Suven Pharmaceuticals said in a press release.

On February 7, 2024, Moneycontrol was the first to report that leading global private equity fund Advent International had initiated the merger process for its portfolio companies Suven Pharmaceuticals and Cohance Lifesciences and picked Kotak Mahindra Capital and Citi as advisors for deal aspects like swap ratio, due diligence and fairness opinion.

The merger will establish Suven as a diversified CDMO (Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization) and API (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient) leader in India, transcending its current revenue base, the company also informed exchanges.

The merged entity is expected to be amongst leading integrated CDMO players in India. With an expanded capacity of 2,650 kL and a significantly broadened customer base, scale and synergy benefits would be substantial.

Upon the scheme becoming effective, all shareholders of Cohance will be issued shares of Suven at the ratio of 11 shares of Suven for every 295 shares of Cohance, based on the swap ratio. The new shares of Suven so issued will be traded on the NSE and BSE. Advent entites will own 66.7 percent and the public shareholders will hold 33.3 percent of the combined entity (pre-ESOP dilution).