Mankind to expand gastro, derma presence, says MD Rajeev Juneja
'We are not great in the gastro [segment]...we have decided that we are supposed to work a lot in gastro because it has become semi-chronic, and our inclination is towards the chronic side," Juneja said, adding thatgastro in India is one of the fastest-growing segments.
'Along with this, we are working on derma as well," he said.
The gastro segment grew 7.3% year on year in April, according to pharma intelligence platform Pharmarack.
Further, Mankind is developing a novel anti-obesity and diabetes drug in-house. The drug candidate, GRP119, is currently in phase 2 trials in Australia, and Juneja said that results are expected in the next six to nine months.
In FY25, Mankind signed a non-exclusive patent licensing agreement with Takeda Pharmaceuticals to commercialise its novel drug Vonoprazan, to treat Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD).
Also Read: Sun Pharma to ramp up growth-boosting specialty portfolio in FY26
Juneja said that the company is evaluating all options to increase its presence in these therapy areas, including in-licensing products from innovators or small acquisitions.
'No past strategy can be guaranteed for future success. So we need to apply our mind and try to bring some kind of differentiation in whatever we do," said Juneja. 'The point is that once we decide that our intention is that we are supposed to be good on the gastro side, we start searching for avenues, we start searching for people, we start searching for products," he said.
The company will also continue to strengthen its leadership in the women's health segment, which received a boost last year through its acquisition of Bharat Serum and Vaccines (BSV).
With its foundation strengthened in FY25, Mankind aims to grow 1.2 to 1.3 times the Indian pharmaceutical market. Juneja said this will be driven by its focus on its chronic domestic formulations portfolio.
Juneja said the focus is also on growing larger brands, from the current ₹50 crore to ₹100 crore brands for products to ₹500 crore brands.
'This is the strategy we basically want to pursue in future, because we have seen that once you create that kind of a brand, that's a very big entry barrier," he added.
BSV acquisition
Mankind is on track with the integration of BSV, which it acquired for ₹13,768 crore in October 2024. The integration will be funded through a mix of internal accruals and external debt.
Juneja said the company focused on removing the 'extra flab" and bringing in the right talent for the acquired entity in FY25. This year, he expects 18-20% growth from the BSV portfolio. The goal is to increase the reach and awareness of BSV's niche super-speciality products.
BSV is working on two biosimilars, the company's investor presentation highlighted, although Juneja declined to share more details on the BSV pipeline.
Also Read: Emcure Pharmaceuticals to expand gynaecology, derma portfolio for India market in FY26
Vishal Manchanda, senior vice president of Institutional Equities at Systematix Group, toldMintthat BSV's platform and skillset for making recombinant drugs (created by inserting genes from one species into a host species) can be leveraged to make biosimilars.
Select companies in India, including Biocon, are skilled at the recombinant process. However, Manchanda pointed out that Mankind has the potential to scale this up meaningfully.
Innovation push
'If you're a pharma company, naturally, you gain respect once you have great R&D," Juneja said. 'We started our own R&D in Mankind 13-14 years back…going forward, we'll be putting a bit more money in the R&D side…our R&D expenses will increase because that would be the future need as well."
'We wish to become a bigger company…our dream is to become India's number one company on the domestic side," Juneja said, adding that 'we need to have certain innovative products, and we are working for that".
Mankind's focus on innovation and speciality segments comes as the Indian pharmaceutical market has become more crowded. Most segments already have established market leaders.
'…the promoters are realising that there is a challenge to growth. And they know the space they have been playing in is now kind of difficult to expand from where they are, meaningfully expand from where they are. So I think Mankind promoters being extremely committed to India business, they are also kind of prepared on how to take this forward," Manchanda said.
'What they are actually looking for is a bigger avenue to build growth on," he added, referring to Mankind's BSV acquisition.
Internal corrections
Mankind undertook several internal correction initiatives in the last year, including leadership changes and improving synergies between its divisions, Juneja said.
Also Read: Zydus bets big on vaccines and medtech
'If you look at the history of Mankind, in 30 years, we have become the fourth largest company," Juneja said, adding that for any company growing very fast, there comes a time when growth plateaus.
'But once you bring commercial excellence, you bring people from outside…a number of flaws can come in front of you, and you have two choices: Either to remove those flaws gradually without affecting your sales and profit and growth, or second, do it immediately," Juneja said.
'We belong to the second category, and we decided that by March 2025, we'll clean up Mankind from every side," he added.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
25 minutes ago
- Time of India
No pause on Russian oil imports, India continues imports based on economic rationale
India has not halted oil purchases from Russia in response to the US President's tariff threat and continues to buy based solely on economic considerations, said AS Sahney, Chairman of Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), the country's largest oil firm. Purchase volumes may fluctuate monthly based on the discounts offered on Russian crude grades like Urals. While discounts had previously reached as high as $ 40 per barrel, they have narrowed to just $ 1.5 late last month, resulting in reduced offtake. Discounts have since widened to about $ 2.70. However, India's intent to continue buying Russian oil remains unchanged. India became the largest customer of Russian oil from 2022, after western countries shunned Russian oil and imposed sanctions on Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine. Sahney said refiners like IOC buy crude oil from Russia purely on economic consideration and have not been asked to cut or boost purchase in response to US tariffs, he said. "There is no pause," he said. Russian oil has continued to flow to Indian refiners in July as well as this month. "We continue to buy, purely based on economic considerations, that is to say if the pricing and characteristics of the crude make sense in our scheme of processing, we buy," he told reporters here. "No special effort is being made to either increase or decrease (the import volumes). We are buying crude as per economic considerations," he said. Imports from Russia made up for 22-23 per cent of all the crude oil that IOC refineries processed in the April-June period. US President Donald Trump last week announced an additional 25 per cent tariff on US imports from India -- raising the overall duty to 50 per cent -- as a penalty for the country's continued imports of Russian oil. Since the steep tariffs are likely to hit the $ 40 billion of non-exempt exports that India does to the US, there has been chatter around stopping or curtailing oil imports from Russia. "There are no sanctions on Russian crude," he said. "India has not done anything that violates any sanctions". Separately, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) Director (Finance) Vetsa Ramakrishna Gupta on an investor call said the discounts have narrowed to $ 1.5 per barrel, and led to lower imports last month. In the first quarter, Russian oil made up 34 per cent of BPCL's crude intake and the company hopes to return to a 30-35 per cent ratio as long as there are no sanctions, he said. Before February 2022, Russian crude oil accounted for less than 1 per cent of India's total oil imports. However, after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, western nations shunned Russian energy, leading to Russian crude being available at discounted rates compared to global benchmarks. Seizing the economic opportunity, India ramped up its purchases, significantly increasing its reliance on Russian oil to meet domestic energy needs. Russian crude oil now meets 30 per cent of the requirement. Sahney said at no time was import of crude oil from Russia sanctioned and so India continued to purchase keeping in mind economic considerations. "Such purchases will continue unless sanctions are imposed," he said. "We have not got any instruction (from the government) to either increase or decrease purchase. We are doing business as usual." About talk of refiners being asked to increase purchases from the US in a bid to placate Trump, IOC Chairman said, "Neither are we being told to buy more nor are we told to buy less from US or any other destination. Economic considerations dictate our actions."
The Hindu
25 minutes ago
- The Hindu
U.S. has no alternative to India in diamonds, say industry leaders
Already grappling with job losses and a slowdown in orders, Gujarat's diamond sector has been dealt another setback as the United States, its largest export destination, raised import duties to 25% with an additional tariff of 25% coming into effect from August 27, taking the total to 50%. The hike, announced by U.S. President Donald Trump, has raised concerns among exporters who warn the rates are 'unsustainable' for long-term trade, and are optimistic about the business. It comes at a time when industry is still struggling with the fallout of the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the growing presence of cheaper lab-grown diamonds in global markets. Despite the grim statistics, some leaders are urging calm. 'This is a temporary phase. The U.S. has no best viable alternative to India for loose and jewellery diamonds,' said Jagdish Khunt, president of the Surat Diamond Association. 'Yes, tariffs are a blow, but it will eventually push prices up in the U.S., and buyers there will have to absorb the difference because sourcing from India remains unavoidable,' he told The Hindu. Industry estimates show that the U.S. alone accounts for more than 30% of India's gem and jewellery exports, making it the single-largest overseas buyer. In Gujarat, where nearly 90% of natural diamonds imported to India are cut and polished, trade bodies say more than one lakh workers have lost jobs since April this year. In May, the Gujarat government rolled out a relief scheme aimed at helping diamond artisans and small units hit by a global slowdown. More than one lakh former workers from the sector have sought assistance under the programme, which offers ₹13,500 per child to support affected families. 'Nearly 90% of India's supply is processed here. What other alternatives do they have? We have the best 'ratnakalakars' (diamond artisans) in the world, and a customer buying diamonds will never compromise on quality,' asks Mr. Khunt. He compared the American affinity for diamonds to the Indian love for gold, noting that just as Indians continue to purchase gold despite soaring prices, U.S. consumers remain steadfast in their preference for diamonds. 'No matter the circumstances, they pick diamonds over gold. We expect the market to steady ahead of Christmas and New Year, with fresh orders starting to flow in,' he said, adding that over 7.5 lakh artisans are working in 3,500 small and large units. Data from the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), India's apex body for the industry, shows that in the 2024–25 fiscal year, India shipped cut and polished diamonds worth $4.8 billion to the United States. The U.S. market thus accounted for over one-third of the country's total diamond exports, which amounted to $13.2 billion for the year. According to GJEPC, India's rough diamond imports fell sharply in 2024–25 to $9.52 billion, down from $14.26 billion in the previous fiscal. Babu Vaghani, president of the Lab-Grown Diamonds Association, shared Mr. Khunt's optimism, describing the current situation as a 'short-term crisis.' 'Whatever the challenges, we must keep going until Diwali. Even if it means trading on smaller margins, the work has to continue for the sake of the lakhs of people who depend on it for their livelihood,' he said. Mr. Vaghani pointed out that more than half of the artisans outside Surat, particularly in Bhavnagar, Botad, Mehsana, and other districts, are women. 'In rural areas, women play a major role in diamond polishing,' he added.
Indian Express
25 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Independence Day 2025 Share Market Holiday: Are NSE and BSE open or closed today, August 15?
Independence Day Stock Market Holiday 2025: As traders and investors prepare for the forthcoming trading sessions, many are curious whether the Indian stock market is open or closed today, August 15 —marked as Indian Independence Day. This year, it is being observed on Friday, August 15, 2025, resulting in the Indian stock market and commodities market being closed for trading in observance of the 79th Independence Day. Trading in all sectors — stocks, derivatives, and securities lending and borrowing (SLB) — will be suspended on both the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) today, Friday. Trading will resume across all sectors on Monday, August 18, as Independence Day is an official holiday according to the NSE holiday schedule. This year, in 2025, the Indian stock markets are set to observe 14 holidays along with mandatory closures on the weekends – Saturday and Sunday. Indian stock markets operate from 9:15 AM to 3:30 PM, Monday to Friday, including a pre-opening session from 9:00 AM to 9:15 AM on regular trading days. There are more stock market holidays in August than just Independence Day. In addition to August 15, the BSE and NSE will be closed on August 27 for Ganesh Chaturthi. This means that there will be two trading holidays in August. The prior weekday market holiday occurred on May 1, in observance of Labour Day. According to the RBI Holiday Calendar for 2025, even the public and private banks across India will also be closed today, in observance of the national holiday.
