The Hindu Business Line : Bartronics fixes price band at Rs 63-75 for public issue

BARTRONICS India Ltd, an identification technology solutions provider, has priced its shares at the band of Rs 63 to Rs 75 per share, including the premium amount.

The company is entering the capital market with an offer of 65 lakh equity shares to part-fund its expansion-cum-acquisition plans. The issue is set to hit the market on December 20.

The Bartronics Managing Director, Mr Sudhir Rao, told Business Line that the company is expanding into the overseas markets with centres in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh and West Asia and planning an acquisition to enter the US market.

Earlier this year, the company had made a private placement of shares to raise about Rs 7.5 crore wherein Bennett Coleman & Company Ltd had also invested.

The market for both bar-coding and radio frequency identification (RFID) will co-exist given the advantages barcodes offer. As against 2-3 paise per barcode, typically, an RFID tag now costs about Rs 16. There has been concerted efforts to bring down the cost of RFID from Rs 16 a tag to Rs 8.

Yet, the huge difference between the two will help the barcode industry to thrive. These would be in the areas of supply chain, retail markets and even automotive industries.

The market for identification is set to explode with the growth of retail industry in the country and the mandatory requirements by large American enterprises, which expect vendors to conform to their requirements.