Exclusive | PharmEasy in talks to buy Thyrocare for around Rs 7,000 crore

Online medical store PharmEasy is in advanced talks to acquire diagnostics services chain Thyrocare in a deal worth about Rs 7,000 crore, people with direct knowledge of the development said.

Given the IPO timelines of PharmEasy’s parent company API Holdings, a  deal to buy Thyrocare is likely to be announced soon, the people cited above told Moneycontrol on condition of anonymity. API Holdings, which recently acquired PharmEasy‘s smaller rival Medlife, is likely to raise $1.2 billion through the IPO this financial year, Moneycontrol reported last month.

The lack of a succession plan at Thyrocare could be a key reason for the company’s founder, Dr A Velumani, to sell the company at a time when valuations are rewarding, the people said.

Thyrocre promoters are likely to sell a stake that is likely to trigger an open offer for shareholders of the company. The promoters held a 66.14% stake in Thyrocare as of March 31, 2021.

API Holdings may have two listed companies after a deal for Thyrocarel and the planned IPO. The deal structure in the works is addressing the existence of separate listed entities in the group.

The people cited above also suggest that Dr Velumani may even look at investing in API Holdings as part of the agreement.

API Holdings declined to comment on the development.  An email query sent to Thyrocare by Moneycontrol hadn’t elicited a comment.

API Holdings has been reinforcing its portfolio ahead of the IPO. The purchase of Medlife made PharmEasy India’s largest medicine delivery platform. Former banker Aditya Puri recently joined the board of the company to help scale up the company’s businesses.

Thyrocare listed on the stock exchanges in May 2016 with a market capitalisation of around Rs 3,300 crore on its debut. The share price has risen to around Rs 1,300/share and gained Rs 300/share in June. The share was trading at Rs 1,315, up nearly 1.4 percent at the time of publishing.

Thyrocare is a leading pan-India diagnostic chain and conducts an array of medical diagnostic tests and profiles of tests that centre on early detection and management of disease and medical disorders.