Kolkata-based Suraksha Diagnostic eyes $100 million IPO; PE investor OrbiMed to sell stake

Kolkata-based Suraksha Diagnostic eyes $100 mn IPO; PE investor OrbiMed to sell stake

Suraksha Diagnostic Pvt Ltd, a West Bengal-based diagnostic chain, has started work on its initial public offering (IPO), which will see the company raise as much as $100 million (around Rs 800 crore), sources aware of the development told Moneycontrol.

The diagnostic chain’s private equity investor, OrbiMed, is likely to sell a large part of its stake through the IPO, the sources added.

Incorporated in 2005, the company is promoted by Kishan Kejriwal and Dr Somnath Chatterjee. It provides diagnostic services in pathology, cardiology, gastroenterology, neurology and imaging. The diagnostic chain predominantly operates in West Bengal, with over 40 centres in the state, along with one centre each in Patna and Guwahati.

“Work on the IPO has started already. Investment bank ICICI Securities is advising the company on its plans to list,” said one of the sources.

“As of now, the plan is for an IPO that will largely be an offer for sale by existing shareholders, and within that, OrbiMed is likely to be the biggest seller. The numbers are still being worked on,” the source added.

OrbiMed invested in Suraksha in 2016, investing fresh capital into the company as well as acquiring the stake of private equity investor Lighthouse, which had invested in the company in 2013.

OrbiMed holds a stake of close to 35 percent in Suraksha, documents filed with the Registrar of Companies show.

Emails sent to OrbiMed and the Suraksha diagnostics promoters are yet to elicit a response.

OrbiMed India bets

OrbiMed is a global healthcare investment firm with over $17 billion in assets under management. It invests across the healthcare industry, from start-ups to large multinational corporations, through its private equity funds, public equity funds, and royalty/credit funds.

Last year, the PE investor raised more than $4.3 billion in commitments for its latest private investment funds.

OrbiMed’s investments in India include healthcare products distribution platform Entero Healthcare Solutions, generics pharmaceutical formulations maker Marksans Pharma, D2C ayurvedic nutrition brand Kapiva, and stem cell bank reproductive diagnostic solutions provider LifeCell.

Last month, Orbimed sold shares worth Rs 480 crore in the Rs 1,600 crore Entero Healthcare Solutions IPO, selling almost a third of its 57 percent stake in the company.

Healthcare IPOs

The IPO boom has seen several healthcare services companies tap the markets to raise funds.

Eastern India-focused GPT Healthcare raised Rs 525 crore in February, while Western-India focused Jupiter Life Line Hospitals raised Rs 542 crore from its September IPO.

In July, Noida-based Yatharth Hospital & Trauma Care Services Ltd had raised Rs 686 crore through its IPO.

Insurance third-party administrator Medi Assist Healthcare went public in January.