Lahore December 15 2022: Searle Pakistan Limited (the Company or the Issuer) has applied for listing on the Pakistan Stock Exchange to raise PKR 3.2 billion.
The Company shall be issuing 240,462,134 Ordinary Shares using the 100% Book Building Method at a Floor Price of PKR 13.50/- per share.
Searle Pakistan Limited (SPL) is one of Pakistan’s leading pharmaceutical companies. SPL is in the business of importing, manufacturing, marketing and sales of pharmaceutical products with a strong presence in Pakistan and Sri Lanka. SPL has developed expertise in major health segments like Cardiology, Neuropsychiatry, Anti-Infective, Gastroenterology, Gynecology, Ophthalmology, Pulmonology, Endocrinology, Vaccines and Bone Disorders.
It is a subsidiary of The Searle Company Limited (“TSCL”), Pakistan’s second largest listed pharmaceutical company in terms of market capitalization and the only Pakistani company listed on Forbes Asia, Best Under a Billion 2017 to 201915 . In August 2020, TSCL acquired OBS and later renamed it to Searle Pakistan Limited. SPL’s manufacturing site is approximately 2.97 acres. The manufacturing facility is located at C-14, Manghopir Road, S.I.T.E Industrial Area, Karachi, which is one of the largest industrial centers of Pakistan.
It is among the very few companies in Pakistan that have entered strategic business alliances with reputed international firms like MSD, Vifor and Santen. The Company has one of the largest sales networks, comprising more than 500 medical sales professionals16 and over 500,000 prescriptions per day by doctors across the country.
Trading stocks accounted for 58% of the total cost of goods sold at SPL in FY22, and are almost entirely imported. This exposes the Company to significant foreign exchange risk.
SPL intends to Issue 240,462,134 ordinary shares at a Floor price of PKR 13.5/- per share. The proceeds raised would be utilized to set up Option 1: a new pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Lahore, capable of producing high quality Intravenous (IV), Ophthalmology, Dermatology and other Oral Solid Dosage (“OSD”) products or Option 2: In order to optimally utilize the IPO proceeds, the Company may opt to implement the project through buyout of the local IV manufacturing facility in the Country
Recent History of the Company
OBS Pakistan (Private) Limited (“OBS”) was formed in 2008 for the purpose of acquiring the business of Merck Sharp & Dohme of Pakistan Limited (“MSD Pakistan”). The business of MSD Pakistan was merged with and into OBS with effect from July 01, 2009 after sanctioning of Scheme of Arrangement through an order dated May 25, 2009 of the Honourable High Court of Sindh.
In 2010, Merck & Co. Inc., USA entered into contract with OBS for sale of Schering Plough products in Pakistan. In 2017 and 2018, OBS entered strategic business alliances with Santen Pharmaceuticals Asia (Pte.) Limited and Vifor International AG respectively for sale and distribution of their products in Pakistan.
In June, 2019, Luna Pakistan (Private) Limited (“Luna”) a wholly owned subsidiary of Universal Ventures (Private) Limited acquired control of OBS from its former sponsor, OBS Healthcare (Private) Limited through subscription of shares in Lunar Pharma (Private) Limited (“Lunar”) parent company of OBS. Subsequently, Luna acquired remaining shareholding of Lunar from Aitken Stuart Pakistan (Private) Limited and its nominee and Lunar became a wholly owned subsidiary of Luna.
On August 12, 2020, Lunar and OBS were merged with and into Luna through a Scheme of Arrangement sanctioned by Sindh Hight Court and name of the surviving entity Luna Pakistan (Private) Limited was changed to OBS Pakistan (Private) Limited. As a consequence of the amalgamation, all the shares held by Luna and Lunar and its nominees into Lunar and OBS respectively, stand cancelled and extinguished. Under the Scheme of Arrangement, Lunar and OBS stands dissolved without winding up.
Subsequently, on August 24, 2020 Universal Ventures (Private) Limited sold its entire shareholding in OBS to The Searle Company Limited (TSCL) and OBS became wholly owned subsidiary of TSCL. On July 12, 2021 the name was changed from OBS Pakistan (Private) Limited to Searle Pakistan (Private) Limited which was later converted into a public unlisted limited company named Searle Pakistan Limited (SPL) on August 27, 2021.
