Hyderabad, November 14, 2006
Ocimum Biosolutions today announced that International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, will invest $ 6.5 million in equity, for a minority stake and debt in the company. Funds raised from this transaction will be used for financing the company’s growth.
Commenting on the announcement, Anuradha Acharya, Founder & CEO of Ocimum Biosolutions, says, “We are very happy to have IFC as a partner in our growth. These are exciting times for Ocimum, and to have IFC as an investor brings a lot of confidence to our clients and partners.”
Iyad Malas, IFC’s Director for South Asia, said, “IFC’s support to Ocimum Biosolutions will provide the company its much needed growth capital to establish an internationally competitive contract research outsourcing company and promote the discovery of new drugs at lower costs. We will also help the company improve its corporate governance standards.”
This is Ocimum Biosolution’s first round of fund-raising from private equity investors. The company is contemplating another round of fund-raising in the next 18 to24 months. It recently acquired a manufacturer of oligos based in Europe and is scouting for more targets in the European market.
IFC will support the company’s expansion and invest in research and development infrastructure in India by recruiting and training scientists to perform drug research aimed at improving human health.
About International Finance Corporation
The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, is the largest multilateral provider of financing for private enterprise in developing countries. IFC finances private sector investments, mobilizes capital in international financial markets, facilitates trade, helps clients improve social and environmental sustainability, and provides technical assistance and advice to businesses and governments. From its founding in 1956 through FY06, IFC has committed more than $56 billion of its own funds for private sector investments in the developing world and mobilized an additional $25 billion in syndications for 3,531 companies in 140 developing countries. With the support of funding from donors, it has also provided more than $1 billion in technical assistance and advisory services. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
About Ocimum Biosolutions
Ocimum Biosolutions is a life sciences research and development enabling company with three main focus areas, “bioIT” (biology-related information technology), microarrays, and contract research services. The U.S. operations of the company focus on custom contract research in the molecular biology area, while the Indian operations provide bioIT services and leverage India’s low-cost advantage in information technology space. The company enjoys a strong brand image in the market and has worked with some of the best research organizations in the world, including IIT Kharagpur, National Research Council of Canada, Agriculture and Agri Foods, NIH, and Dow Agro Sciences.
Ocimum Biosolutions has adopted a strategy to ramp up its business quickly and has demonstrated its capability to execute this strategy in the past. As a part of its strategy, Ocimum Biosolutions acquired a division of MWG Biotech, Germany in 2005. The company has received a host of awards and recognitions. The company has recently received the IT Innovation award by NASSCOM, presented by president of India. Red Herring magazine picked Ocimum as one of the eight companies to watch in India and included it in Red Herring’s Asia 100. Deloitte ranked the company as fourth-fastest growing technology company in India and 55th-fastest growing technology company in the Asia-Pacific region. For more information, please visit:
www.ocimumbio.com
.
