Biocon Biologics and Serum Institute of India have recast an agreement they inked 18 months ago involving vaccines and other biological products.

Under the revised deal, Serum Institute’s total investment in Biocon Biologics will double to $300 million, making it one of the largest investments for the Pune-based vaccine maker.

Adar Poonawalla, Serum Institute’s Chief Executive, said this was one of the company’s largest investments in a strategic alliance.  “We respect and admire the biologics business built by Biocon. Don’t know whether we will increase the investment in future. There may be future investment from other investors in Biocon Biologics, but will not comment on increasing stake in Biocon Biologics,” Poonawalla told businessline.

The earlier agreement involved BBL offloading 15 per cent stake to SILS (Serum Institute of Life Sciences) at a total valuation of $4.9 billion, giving it access to 100 million doses of vaccines annually for 15 years. It also gave Adar Poonawalla a board seat on BBL.

The revised transaction will give the company about 4.9 percent stake in Biocon Biologics (at $6-billion valuation), according to a media report. The board seat remains, Poonawalla told a business channel, adding that he would not exercise this, just yet.

Access to doses

In a communication on Monday, Biocon had said that Biocon Biologics and SILS had reached an agreement to withdraw from the original equity structure contemplated under their strategic alliance announced in September 2021.

“While BBL had received approval from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in Karnataka, SILS was awaiting approval from the NCLT in Maharashtra to complete the merger,” Biocon said.

Under the revised terms of the alliance, Biocon said Serum Life Sciences would make an additional equity investment of $150 million through the conversion of the $150 million loan provided to Biocon Pharma Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Biocon Limited, into equity in BBL. And this investment was in addition to the $ 150 million that SILS had invested in Biocon Biologics in November 2022, resulting in SILS’s aggregate equity investment in BBL amounting to $300 million, the note from Biocon said.

BBL would have  access to 100 million doses of vaccines annually together with the distribution rights to Serum’s vaccine portfolio, the company said, adding to BBL’s product portfolio in the global market.

Neither company gave updated details on the vaccines or products that would be covered in the revised deal. But in a joint media interaction by both companies in September 2021, they had said, besides vaccines, the alliance would look to develop antibodies targeting infectious diseases, including Dengue and HIV, besides leveraging the research and manufacturing of both companies.

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