Advent merges Cohance, Suven

Global private equity firm Advent International has merged two of its pharmaceutical portfolio firms, Cohance Lifesciences Ltd. and Suven Pharmaceuticals Ltd, according to a joint announcement. The merged entity will have three distinct business units—Pharma CDMO, Spec Chem CDMO, and API+ (inclusive of formulations), the release said.

For every 11 shares of Suven, 295 shares of Cohance will be allotted, as per the terms of the merger. “The new shares of Suven so issued will be traded on the NSE and BSE. Advent entities shall own around 66.7% stake and the public shareholders will hold around 33% stake in the merged entity. This ratio is pre-ESOP dilution,” the firms clarified in the release.

The overall transaction is expected to conclude over the next 12-15 months subject to receipt of relevant shareholder and regulatory approvals.

The merger further strengthens Suven’s position with niche capabilities and scale benefits, the release said.

“The merger shall establish Suven’s position as a diversified CDMO and API leader in India, transcending our current revenue base. The merged entity is expected to be amongst the leading integrated CDMO players in India. With an expanded capacity to ~2,650 kL and a significantly broadened customer base, scale and synergy benefits are substantial,” the statement said.

CDMO is short for contract development and manufacturing organization, and API stands for active pharmaceutical ingredient.

Cohance is a leading CDMO and merchant API platform having developed low-mid volume molecules as well as capabilities in the form of its antibody drug conjugates platform.