Bain Capital, a US buyout firm, has approached Dr Reddy's Laboratories (DRL) about a joint bid to buy out Cipla's promoters, the Hamied family.
According to people familiar with the situation, senior leadership from both sides met last week with their advisors to discuss and formalise a strategy.
As per sources, Bain Capital is one of the private equity (PE) funds with which Torrent has been in talks to raise up to Rs 8,300 crore ($1 billion) as part of its financing plan for a potential $7 billion-plus buyout, the largest ever in India.
If DRL decides to participate, it will not only improve Cipla's competitive bidding landscape, but the combined entity will also become the leading Indian-origin pharma major at home, with a consolidated market share of 8% (based on June 2023 Indian Pharma Market data).
It will also be the leading Indian generic player in the US and emerging markets. Such a company would be a formidable rival to Sun Pharma, the most valuable Indian player with a market capitalisation of 2.65 lakh crore.