Dr Reddy's to buy some South Asian brands of Belgian drug company UCB for Rs800 crore

Dr Reddy's Laboratories, India's second-largest drug maker by sales, yesterday struck a deal to buy some established South Asian brands of Belgian drug company UCB SA, for Rs800 crore ($128.38 million).

The Hyderabad-based company said that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire a select portfolio of the established products business of UCB, in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Maldives.

The acquired businesses, which generated revenues of around Rs150 crore last year, are in the areas of dermatology, respiratory and paediatrics diseases.

The acquisition includes around 350 employees in UCB's Indian operations. 

Alok Sonig, senior vice president and India business head, said, ''the acquired UCB portfolio shall accelerate Dr Reddy's presence in the high growth areas of dermatology, respiratory and paediatrics with market leading brands like Atarax, Nootropil, Zyrtec, Xyzal, Xyzal M etc.''

Mark McDade, UCB's COO said, "UCB is in a strong position with a solid platform for continuous growth thanks to our core products and our promising pipeline. This position allows us to enhance our focus on our key neurology portfolio in India, providing innovative solutions to patients living with severe diseases.

Brussels-based UCB is a €3.4-billion pharmaceutical company operating in over 40 countries and specialises in R&D, specifically involving medications centered on epilepsy, Parkinson's, & crohn's diseases.

The company's focuses on treatments for the fields of central nervous system disorders including epilepsy, inflammatory disorders including allergy, and oncology.

The transaction is expected to be closed in the first quarter of the financial year 2015-16.