Motilal Oswal Private Equity to invest ₹240 cr in Molbio Diagnostics

Motilal Oswal Private Equity (MOPE), a subsidiary of diversified financial services group Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd (MOFSL), has agreed to invest up to ₹240 crore in Molbio Diagnostics, a Goa-based, research-driven diagnostic company. The investment will be made from its India Business Excellence Fund–III.

Molbio, along with its subsidiary Bigtec labs, had developed and commercialised Truenat, a point-of-care (PoC) molecular diagnostics platform using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology. Truenat can diagnose 22 infectious diseases, such as tuberculosis (TB), H1N1, dengue, HIV and hepatitis, among others. It has a pipeline for an additional 43 diseases, including Coronavirus and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), MOPE said in a statement.

Vishal Tulsyan, Managing Director and CEO of MOPE, said: “Molbio has successfully innovated the world’s first point-of-care molecular diagnostic platform and is a true testament to ‘Make in India’ for the world. Molbio’s business model of close-ended diagnostic platform with multiple test assays has strong potential across the globe, both in public and private sector”.

“Through this partnership, we intend to help Molbio scale up its operations…,” he added.

To spur Molbio’s growth plans

Established in 2000, Molbio and Bigtec have spent 18 years on R&D, collaborated with reputed institutions in India and across the globe to develop and deploy molecular diagnostics in resource-limited settings.

Molbio is working closely with Central and State governments to supportthe national mission of TB eradication by 2025 and efficient diagnosis of H1N1, dengue, hepatitis B&C and other infectious diseases.

Sriram Natarajan, Director and CEO of Molbio, said: “Today, India has the highest TB burden across the globe and nearly 1,400 people die of TB every day. Truenat will help in decentralising and democratising access to high-quality diagnostics to millions of patients suffering from TB and other infectious diseases even at peripheral and remote settings”.

“Partnering with MOPE will accelerate Molbio’s growth plans and help the company in scaling its business. The funds will be utilised for fulfilling large committed orders, expansion of manufacturing facility and for other working capital and general corporate purposes,” he added.