Hyderabad-based Aptuit Laurus Pvt Ltd, a company developing and manufacturing active pharmaceutical ingredients, is raising $40 million (Rs 200 crore), led by Fidelity Growth Partners India, the private equity arm of the global asset management giant Fidelity. Aptuit CEO Dr C. Satyanarayana also participated in the latest round of funding. However, the company had not detailed the purpose of this fundraising.
Incorporated in 2005 by Satyanarayana, former chief operating officer of Matrix Laboratories Ltd (now Mylan Laboratories), Aptuit operates as a contract drug development company and specialises in medicinal chemistry, consultancy, process technologies for drug substances, safety & hazard assessment formulation development, drug substance manufacturing and drug product discovery & development. The company also provides the Clinicopia suite, a clinical packaging and supply management solution. The company serves biotech and pharmaceutical industries.
“Aptuit Laurus continues to drive innovation in its strong product pipeline of difficult-to-make molecules, which we believe, will help it build a long-term defensible business,” Raj Dugar, senior managing director at FIL Capital Advisors commented on the investment.
In November 2011, Fidelity invested an undisclosed sum in Bangalore-based medical diagnostics company XCyton Diagnostics Pvt Ltd.
Fidelity Growth Partners India seeks to invest anywhere between $10 million and $50 million across a broad range of sectors in India. The firm has also invested in Mind Shaper Tech and Transpole Logistics, among others.
