Russia's RDIF, Conglomerate Sistema Create Holding To Consolidate National Pharma Market

(@FahadShabbir)

Russia's RDIF, Conglomerate Sistema Create Holding to Consolidate National Pharma Market

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th February, 2021) The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and a consortium of investors including business conglomerate Sistema and major national lender VTB have completed the creation of Binnopharm Group with the goal of making it a leading producer of medicines and innovative pharma products in the country.

The holding was created on the basis of pharma companies Alium and Sintez.

"A consortium of investors including the Russian Direct Investment Fund ... , the Russia-China Investment Fund (RCIF, established by RDIF and China Investment Corporation), the leading investment funds of the middle East, as well as Sistema PJSFC, a publicly-traded Russian investment company, and VTB Group announce completion of the establishment of the pharmaceutical holding company Binnopharm Group," the RDIF said.

The holding is set to become one of the top three pharma manufacturers in Russia "as part of a long-term strategy to consolidate Russian pharmaceutical market and create a leading producer of medicines and innovative pharmaceuticals," according to a statement from RDIF.

Sistema and VTB will have 79 percent stake in the holding, followed by the RDIF and its foreign partners with 15.8 percent. The remaining 5.2 percent will belong to individual minority shareholders.

"The creation of one of the leading diversified pharmaceutical holdings will allow the development and production of high quality and innovative medicines to increase the wellbeing and life expectancy of the Russian population. One example of such an approach was the start of production of the Sputnik V vaccine against the coronavirus infection at the Binnopharm plant in Zelenograd," RDIF CEO Kirill Dmitriev said.

He did not rule out that Binnopharm Group will make initial public offering in the future.