News Desk
KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) held a gong ceremony to celebrate the listing of BF Biosciences Limited (BFBIO). BFBIO is a pharmaceutical joint venture between Ferozsons Laboratories Ltd and Bago Group of Argentina. BF Biosciences has spearheaded Pakistan’s emergence in biotech manufacturing. It was also involved in the export of biotech pharmaceuticals especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. BFBIO has been producing biological medicines for Cancer, Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and Hepatitis-C for both local and international markets.
Present at the ceremony to strike the gong were Mr. Osman Khalid Waheed (CEO of Ferozsons Laboratories Limited), Mr. Farhan Rafiq (COO of BF Biosciences Limited), Mr. Rallys Eduardo Pliauzer (Group Director, Grupo Empresarial Bago S.A.) and Mr. Shahid Ali Habib (CEO of Arif Habib Limited, the Lead Manager to the Issue).
On behalf of PSX, the guests were welcomed by Mr Nihal Qasim (PSX’s Director), Dr. Fakhara Rizwan (PSX’s Company Secretary & Chief Legal & Corporate Affairs Officer PSX), and senior management of Pakistan Stock Exchange. The Argentinian Ambassador to Pakistan, H.E. Mr. Sebastian Sayus graced the occasion.
To expand and enhance production capabilities and to meet post-expansion working capital needs, BF Biosciences Limited planned to raise Rs 1,375,000,000/- from an Issue comprising 25,000,000 ordinary shares of face value worth Rs 3/- each, at a floor price of Rs 55/- per share. The Issue of 25,000,000 ordinary shares were offered through 100% book building method. Initially, 75% of the Issue size, i.e. 18,750,000 shares were allotted to successful bidders and 25% of the Issue size i.e. 6,250,000 ordinary shares, were offered to retail investors.
The bookbuilding which was held on September 25 and 26, 2024, was highly successful. The strike price of Rs 77/- per share being determined. Moreover, a total participation of Rs 4,670 million against the Issue size of Rs 1,375 million was received. This translates to an oversubscription of 3.4 times.
For the public subscription portion of the Issue, applications for a total of 6,325,000 ordinary shares against the Issue size of 6,250,000 ordinary shares were received. Overall, a total of 2,743 applications for 6,325,000 shares amounting to Rs 487,025,000/- were received. The PSX E-IPO service facilitated 372 applications for 418,500 shares amounting to Rs 32,224,500/-.
Speaking at the gong ceremony, Dr. Fakhara Rizwan said, “The successful completion of the IPO and listing of BF Biosciences Limited is a proud moment for Pakistan Stock Exchange where the Issue was oversubscribed by 3.4 times. This will be a valuable addition to the pharmaceutical sector of the Exchange providing increased options for investors on the Stock Exchange”.
On the successful listing of BF Biosciences Limited, Mr. Rallys Eduardo Pliauzer expressed his views that as the founding chairman of BF Biosciences Limited, he is happy to see the Company flourish over time. BF Biosciences is the first joint venture (JV) of the Bagó Group outside Latin America and post Initial Public Offering (IPO), will also be the first Bagó affiliate to be publicly listed. It is also the first JV between corporate entities of Argentina and Pakistan.
Since the start of our joint venture, the Bagó Group’s technical and logistic support have always been there for BF Biosciences. He expressed his confidence that post expansion, with a broader range of products along with synergies from Bagó and Ferozsons, BF Biosciences will quicky emerge as a leading pharma company locally and in export markets.
Speaking at the occasion, Mr. Osman Khalid Waheed said “As the first Pakistani pharmaceutical company to be listed on the Karachi Stock Exchange in 1960, Ferozsons Laboratories Limited is extremely proud of the listing of its JV subsidiary, BF Biosciences Limited on the Pakistan Stock Exchange six decades later.
Ferozsons began as a national enterprise built to serve patients in Pakistan and abroad.The idea of a shared national ownership in our efforts through a public listing was an important part of our founder’s vision and legacy. From inception, we have focused on Putting Patients First and addressing the most pressing unmet medical needs.
BF Biosciences Limited was established as Pakistan’s first bio-pharmaceutical manufacturing facility, primarily to eliminate Pakistan’s dependence on extremely expensive biologics such as Interferons for treating Hepatitis B and C, and erythropoietin (EPO) for chronic kidney disease. Through this investment in local production, we reduced treatment costs by over 60%. With our recent expansion, we have expanded our portfolio to include other critical drugs including human insulin, heparins and GLP-1 agents for diabetes that were previously imported and increasingly beyond the reach of patients.
During Covid-19, we were privileged to be selected as one of the international licensees selected by Gilead Sciences to produce Remdesivir under a voluntary license for patients in low and lower middle-income countries.
Earlier this month, Ferozsons was again announced as one of six global partners to produce high quality generic versions of its novel antiviral, Lenecapavir, which had been approved by the USFDA for treating HIV in highly treatment-experienced (HTE) individuals, and is being investigated for use in HIV prevention.
Ferozsons will produce the oral finished dosage form of Lenacapavir, while BFBIO will produce the injectable version of the drug. The license covers 120 countries in the developing world, and provides both FEROZ and BFBIO with the opportunity to be a part of the global effort to eradicate HIV. We thank the public for reposing their trust in our IPO, and pledge to work hard every day to be worthy of this honor”.
Mr. Farhan Rafiq, commented on this significant milestone, stating, “I want to thank all the investors for the trust they have reposed in us during the IPO of BF Biosciences Limited. While sharing the challenges faced by the company due to the country’s social-economic challenges, due to persistent efforts and by the grace of the Almighty, we were able to complete the project and are now fully geared up for commercial production. Post expansion, we have a promising product portfolio, ranging from complex biologicals such as insulin, semaglutide, human recombinant erythropoietin, to a range of non-biological medicines. including proton pump inhibitors, antibiotics and antifungals. I’m confident that with this brownfield expansion, backed by a strong product pipeline and an exceptional team, we have all the tools in place to effectively serve patients’ needs and meet investors’ expectations”.
Mr. Shahid Ali Habib, while sharing his views said that he is excited to see an exceptional level of participation from a diverse range of institutional investors, including mutual funds, banks, insurance companies, provident and pension funds, brokerage houses, and both foreign and local investors. This remarkable enthusiasm has resulted in an impressive oversubscription of 3.4 times, underscoring the strong confidence and trust in our offering.
The gong ceremony was followed by distribution of tombstones to the representatives of participating banks, CTIs & market participants, and PSX, among others.
