Global private equity (PE) firm Carlyle Group is leading the race to buy a minority stake in Piramal Enterprises' pharmaceuticals business. Carlyle might buy the stake for Rs 3,500-4,000 crore, which would value Piramal's pharmaceutical business at Rs 20,000 crore ($2.6 billion), according to a report by The Economic Times.
Carlyle, TA Associates, and KKR submitted separate binding offers for a 20 percent stake, the report said.
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Moneycontrol could not independently verify the story.
Spokespersons for Piramal and Carlyle declined to comment when contacted by The Economic Times.
"Going purely by the bids, Carlyle's offer is most aggressive. It joined the race late but has upped the tempo in recent weeks," an official told the publication.
"The final negotiations before the share purchase agreement are ongoing," the official added.
Piramal had also seen initial interest from investors such as TPG, CVC, Apax, the report said.
The company has hired Rothschild to manage the formal sale process, the report added.
If successful, this will be the US-based firm's second recent investment in India's pharmaceutical space. Carlyle recently acquired a 74 percent stake in SeQuent Scientific for Rs 1,580 crore.
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