UPL may snap up Arysta LifeScience

Indian agrochemical major UPL Ltd may acquire Arysta LifeScience, the agricultural pesticides business of NYSE-listed Platform Specialty Products Corp., for more than $4 billion.

Citing three people aware of the development, the report said UPL is raising funds from a consortium of lenders to finance this deal.

Arysta LifeScience focuses on the development, formulation, registration, marketing and distribution of crop protection products for specialty applications, including seed treatments and biosolutions. The company employs about 3,300 people in 60 countries and recorded revenue of $1.9 billion in 2017.

Last month, Bloomberg reported that UPL had joined hands with sovereign wealth fund Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and other investors in a bid to acquire Arysta LifeScience.

Separately, private equity firms Carlyle Group, Advent International and China’s Fosun International are in talks to acquire a significant stake in Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd’s active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) business, Mint said in another report.

Citing two people aware of the development, the report said that the value of the deal is estimated to be around Rs 1,500 crore or more. Avendus Capital has the mandate to find a buyer, the report added.

In May, Glenmark said it had appointed a committee to assess the feasibility of housing the API and consumer care businesses of the company into separate business entities.

Meanwhile, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has clarified that the sponsors and managers of alternative investment funds are covered under its AIF regulations rather than the foreign direct investment rules, The Economic Times reported.

In April, the finance ministry said in a notification the minimum foreign direct investment for an unregulated fund-based service was $20 million.

The report said that SEBI last month clarified that sponsors and managers of AIFs won’t have to abide by the $20 million limit.