At 75, Venkat Jasti, chairman and managing director of Suven Life Sciences, is making his boldest bet yet in his four-decade-long career. Unlike most of his peers who have retired, Jasti said he prefers an all or nothing approach when asked why he is pouring his personal fortune into a high-risk pipeline of central nervous system (CNS) drugs, chasing a breakthrough despite steep odds.
To fund this pursuit, Jasti sold his profitable contract development and manufacturing services (CDMO) business, Suven Pharmaceuticals, to private equity firm Advent International for Rs 6,313 crore in December 2022. Since then, he has invested Rs 500 crore of his money into Suven Life Sciences, including a Rs 400- crore rights issue in 2022. But more capital will be needed as the company advances multiple potential drugs into clinical trials over the next two years.
Talking to Moneycontrol, Jasti said at least six of Suven’s drug candidates are undergoing or will soon enter critical phase-2 and 3 trials. These proof-of-concept studies assess safety and efficacy in patients, paving the way for further development if successful.
The company expects key trial data readouts between late 2026 and early 2027. Positive results could unlock lucrative licensing deals and boost Suven’s valuation but securing funding remains a challenge.
“For the next two years, we require roughly $100 million (Rs 850 crore),” Jasti said. “As of now, we are funding ourselves, but we are working — maybe we’ll go to market eventually.”
Suven Life may opt for a preferential issue, a qualified institutional placement (QIP), or other market options to raise capital, with a final decision expected within six months.
A business without a revenue stream
Following the CDMO sale, Suven Life Sciences lacks a sustainable revenue source to fund its drug discovery ambitions. The Jasti family owns a 70.27 percent stake in the company, limiting the capital he can inject under regulatory norms, which cap promoter ownership in listed companies at 75 percent.
Suven’s lead asset, SUVN-502 (Masupirdine), a 5-HT6 receptor antagonist, is in phase-3 global trials for treating agitation in Alzheimer’s dementia. The trial involves 380 patients, and one-third have already been enrolled. Jasti expects data readouts between late 2026 and early 2027.
“If the data is good, then there is a possibility for monetising this opportunity,” he said.
The journey of SUVN-502 has been fraught with setbacks. Initially developed for Alzheimer’s and dementia, the drug failed to meet its primary endpoint in a 564-patient phase-2 trial in the US, as announced in November 2019. However, a post-hoc analysis revealed that at least 40 patients with agitation symptoms had shown improvement. This prompted Suven to seek the United States Fodd and Drug Administration's (USFDA's) approval to initiate a new trial focused on this subpopulation.
Jasti is also prioritising SUVN-G3031 (Samelisant), a drug that has completed phase-2 trials in North America for narcolepsy, a chronic sleep disorder. The company is engaging with the FDA to secure approval for a phase-3 trial, expected to commence between June and July this year.
Additional indications such as cataplexy and idiopathic hypersomnia are also under evaluation. Cataplexy is a medical condition in which strong emotion or laughter causes a person to suffer sudden physical collapse though remaining conscious, while idiopathic hypersomnia (IH) is a sleep disorder characterised by excessive daytime sleepiness, difficulty waking up, and unrefreshing naps, with no known underlying cause.
“We have a positive result, very good data,” Jasti said. “We are working with the FDA and finalising the CROs (contract research organisations).” If all goes as planned, data from this trial will be available in 2027.
Another promising candidate, SUVN-T4010, targets cognitive disorders. Suven is in discussions with the FDA and key opinion leaders to determine whether it should focus on major depressive disorder (MDD) or another cognitive ailment. A phase-2 trial is expected to begin around July 2025.
SUVN-911 for MDD has completed a phase-2A open-label trial with positive results. A phase-2B double-blind, placebo-controlled study is set to begin in May, with results expected by early 2027.
The company’s early-stage asset, SUVN-I6107, for cognitive disorders, is currently in phase-1 trials, which are expected to conclude by the end of 2025. A phase-2 trial is planned for 2026.
A bet not for the faint-hearted
Jasti estimates that Suven has invested nearly Rs 3,000 crore in drug discovery, so far. He insisted that a piecemeal approach does not work in this sector, preferring to hire top-tier contract research organisations (CROs) and conduct trials in the US, where costs are higher but regulatory standards align with global expectations. Suven’s research team comprises 100 scientists out of a total workforce of 140, with an annual R&D expenditure of Rs 200 crore.
Jasti believes Indian investors lack an appetite for innovation and intellectual property-driven businesses.
“We don’t blame them, because they are managing other people’s money and naturally, people are looking at making money in six months to one year,” he said. “And here, it is a zero-to-one game.”
But he remains confident that success will shift market sentiment. “One validation, one successful molecule, and everything changes. People will start investing.”
The CNS challenge
CNS drug development is notoriously difficult. Large pharmaceutical companies are increasingly risk-averse, preferring to acquire late-stage compounds rather than invest in early-stage research.
A report titled Two Steps Forward, One Step Back: The Long Road to Success in CNS said the success rate for CNS assets from phase-1 to regulatory submission dropped from 13 percent to just 5-6 percent in 2022. Despite this, interest in CNS research is growing, with pipeline expansion by 31 percent over the past five years. CNS drugs now account for 14 percent of the pharmaceutical industry’s R&D pipeline.
The challenges are significant. The complex biology of CNS disorders, difficulties in patient recruitment and the subjective nature of clinical endpoints contribute to the high failure rate.
Yet, the commercial opportunity is compelling. The global CNS drugs market, valued at $116 billion in 2022, is projected to grow to between $147 billion and $169 billion by 2027, driven by the rising prevalence of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, and increasing demand for mental health treatments.
“Innovation is predominantly driven by smaller companies, with significant contributions from mid-sized and larger pharma players,” the report said. “CNS is the second most important therapy area for deal-making, behind oncology.”
Jasti, undeterred by the odds, remains all in.
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