PlasmaGen Biosciences secures ₹150 crore to expand into global markets
Biopharmaceutical company PlasmaGen Biosciences raises investment ₹150 crore in a new round of equity financing, valuing the company at 150 crore ₹1,500 crore.
ViNS Bioproducts, a privately held biopharma company, took a minority stake in PlasmaGen and led the round with participation from existing investors, other pharmaceutical companies and family offices.
PlasmaGen will use the new funds to expand its business internationally. It has identified distribution partners in “important” export markets.
The company plans to double its presence with its existing portfolio of plasma-derived therapeutics once it returns home. The company’s main products include albumin, intravenous immunoglobulin, rabies immunoglobulin, hepatitis B immunoglobulin and RhD immunoglobulin (anti-D), which it distributes to private and government hospitals in India.
“This investment further strengthens PlasmaGen’s position as a long-term partner healthcare systems and patients both in India and internationally,” PlasmaGen founder and executive chairman Vinod Nahar said in a statement.
company upgraded ₹225 crore in 2023, in the round led by Artian Investments in the UK, with participation from Eight Roads Ventures’ India team and public market investor Ashish Kacholia along with F-Prime Capital. Funds from the previous round were used to build the manufacturing facility, which went into commercial operation last year.
According to Entrackr, the company raised $25 million from Eight Roads Ventures India and F-Prime Capital Partners in its first external funding round in 2017. PlasmaGen rose with the last round ₹600 crore in total funding since its inception in 2010.
Companies like PlasmaGen have become increasingly popular over the past 24 months as both pharma giants and investors’ appetite for vertical therapeutics grows. It’s not just in the final stage that interest increases.
Change preferences
There is venture capital I’m tired of supporting general healthcare companies and now prefer niche solutions. Half of the top 10 venture capital investments in healthcare startups since 2020 PharmacyEasyData from Venture Intelligence shows an online marketplace for medications and diagnostic services. But over the past 18 months, VC investments have also flowed into companies such as Innovaccer, Neuberg Diagnostics and Qure.ai.
The rationale is that while the addressable market size may be small, the impact and value creation is high, especially for IP-led companies. While these companies tend to start small, large pharmaceutical companies often view them as potential merger and acquisition candidates to build out their own product lines and provide healthy exits to investors.
