Apollo Hospitals’ pharma biz rejig gets CCI clearance

The Competition Commission has said it has approved the restructuring of Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd’s pharmacy business and its subsequent acquisition by certain investors.

Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd (AHEL) in November 2018 had announced that it would divest its front-end pharmacy business to Apollo Pharmacy for a lump sum cash consideration of Rs 527.8 crore as part of a restructuring exercise.

Following the transaction, Apollo Pharmacy Ltd (APL) will be a wholly-owned subsidiary of Apollo Medicals Pvt Ltd (AMPL) in which AHEL will have a 25.5 per cent stake.

The other three investors in AMPL will be ENAM Securities with 44.7 per cent stake, Jhelum Investment Fund 1 with 19.9 per cent stake and Hemendra Kothari with 9.9 per cent stake, it had said.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) in a tweet recently said it “approves restructuring of pharmacy business of Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited and its subsequent acquisition by Enam Securities Private Limited, Jhelum Investment Fund I, and Hemendra Kothari.”

Under the new structure, AHEL will be the exclusive supplier for APL under a long-term supplier agreement. AHEL will enter into a brand licensing agreement with APL to license the “Apollo Pharmacy” brand to the front-end stores and online pharmacy operations.

The move followed a review of long-term strategy for both health care services and standalone pharmacies of the company, the firm had said.

Besides, in a separate tweet, the fair trade regulator said it “approves acquisition of up to 25.02 per cent share of Federal-Mogul Goetze by Icahn Enterprises, American Entertainment and IEH FMGI Holdings.”

Federal-Mogul Goetze is engaged in the manufacture and sale of auto components in India, used for automotive, locomotive and industrial applications, a combination notice filed with CCI said.

Icahn Enterprises and American Entertainment Properties Corp are diversified holding companies engaged in various businesses including investment, automotive and energy, among others, while IEH FMGI Holdings is a wholly-owned subsidiary of American Entertainment, it added.