Deals

Shanghai Fosun to Buy Smaller Stake in Indian Drugmaker to Avoid Government Veto

  • Indian government earlier said to block higher 86% stake plan
  • Chinese firm to acquire 74% stake in deal to close by Oct. 3
Photographer: Dhiraj Singh/Bloomberg
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Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group Co. scaled back its proposed purchase of control in Indian drugmaker Gland Pharma Ltd. to a level that would allow it to avoid a government review of the biggest Chinese acquisition in India.

Fosun Pharma, backed by Chinese billionaire Guo Guangchang, will now buy a 74 percent stake for $1.1 billion, according to a statementBloomberg Terminal Sunday. It had originally sought to buy an 86 percent stake in the closely-held Indian drugmaker from an investor group including KKR & Co. However, a stake that size must be signed off by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, which was poised to reject the move, Bloomberg reported Aug. 1, citing people familiar.