The Carlyle Group, a global investment firm, has entered into an agreement to acquire a majority stake of up to 74 per cent in Mumbai-based pure-play animal healthcare company, SeQuent Scientific.

While the financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, sources pegged the deal at ₹1,500-1,800 crore. This would be Carlyle’s first acquisition of a controlling stake in an Indian listed company.

Nasdaq-listed The Carlyle Group will acquire a majority stake (up to 50 per cent) in SeQuent through private share purchase agreements at ₹86 per share. The deal would be conducted by CA Harbor Investments, an entity of CAP V Mauritius Ltd (a fund run by Carlyle Group).

The proposed transaction will trigger a mandatory open offer, with CA Harbor Investments planning to acquire up to 26 per cent shares of SeQuent.

The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of calendar year 2020, following which CA Harbor Investments will become the new promoter of SeQuent.

“We are confident that Carlyle’s global network and resources will be a catalyst for SeQuent’s next stage of growth and innovation,” Arun Kumar, promoter, SeQuent, said.

SeQuent provides animal health Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients, formulations and analytical services in over 100 countries, has more than 1,700 employees. It has manufacturing operations in India, Spain, Turkey, Germany and Brazil.

“We see strong growth potential in the global animal health industry, including the livestock segment where SeQuent is operating, thanks to increasing demand for animal protein, rising awareness of food safety, and growing disposable income,” Neeraj Bharadwaj, Managing Director of the Carlyle Asia Partners team, said.

JP Morgan was the financial advisor, while Nishith Desai Associates was the legal advisor to SeQuent and its promoters. Nomura was the financial advisor while AZB & Partners and White & Case were legal counsels to CA Harbor Investments and Carlyle.

Nomura will be acting as the manager to the public tender offer.

Carlyle has invested more than $2.5 billion in India as of March 31, 2020, with investments in SBI Life, SBI Card, HDFC, India Infoline, Delhivery and PNB Housing Finance. Its investments in the Indian healthcare sector include Medanta Medicity Hospital and Metropolis Healthcare.

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