Diabetes major Eris Lifesciences enters into India's insulin market

Shares of Eris Lifesciences (BSE: 540596) jumped 10% in early trading today, after the Indian drugmaker announced its entry into India’s 35–40 billion rupee ($467-$533 million) insulin and GLP1 agonists market through Eris MJ Biopharm Ltd, a special purpose joint venture between Eris and Mumbai-based MJ Biopharm Pvt Ltd.

Eris, one of India’s leading players in the oral diabetes care segment, will now extend its product offering to insulins and GLP1 agonists. These categories comprise 61% of the anti-diabetes market in the USA, whereas their penetration is just 21% in India. This low penetration is largely on account of the limited number of suppliers in the Indian market. Eris expects significant growth in these segments, considering that diabetes is a progressive disease and Insulin/ GLP 1 therapy is the proven gold standard in diabetes management in the developed markets.

The 70:30 Joint Venture (with Eris holding a 70% stake) will primarily engage in marketing and distribution of human and analogue insulin including Aspart, Glargine and Lispro and GLP-1 agonists (eg, liraglutide, the active ingredient of Danish firm Novo Nordisk’s NOV: N] Victoza and Saxenda brands) and potentially other biopharma products in India. MJ will be responsible for the development, manufacturing and supply of these products to the JV.