Sun Pharma, India’s largest pharmaceutical company, is going to buy Organon—a large US company (headquartered in New Jersey)—for ₹1.10 lakh crore. This is the largest foreign purchase ever by any Indian pharmaceutical company. On Monday, both companies issued a joint statement about the deal. Under the terms of the agreement, Sun Pharma will purchase all outstanding shares of Organon at a price of $14 per share. This entire deal will be done in cash. With this purchase, Sun Pharma will join the list of top 25 pharmaceutical companies in the world, and expand its market reach to 150 countries.
Sun Pharma on its way to becoming the world’s 7th largest pharmaceutical company
With its portfolio of biosimilars and biologic drugs, Sun Pharma is set to become the world’s seventh largest pharmaceutical company. It will get access to 18 major markets, each of which generates revenues of ₹900 crore. The deal also includes Organon’s outstanding debt, which stands at ₹81,000 crore. However, Sun Pharma has said that after this purchase, the total revenue of both the companies is estimated to reach ₹1.16 lakh crore. The deal is expected to be completed in 2027.
Answers to main questions related to the deal
Question 1: What is Sun Pharma’s position globally?
**Answer:** It is one of the largest manufacturers of generic medicines in the world. The market capitalization of the company is ₹4 lakh crore. Globally, it offers a portfolio of over 2,000 products. It operates 41 state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities across five continents, and its business extends to more than 100 countries.
Question 2: How big is Organon as a pharmaceutical company?
**Answer:** Organon, with a market capitalization of ₹28,000 crore, will be established in 2021 by pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. It happened after separation from. Today, it has a market presence in 140 countries including China, the US, Canada, Europe and Brazil. 10,000 people work in the company. Its product portfolio includes more than 70 products in the field of women’s health and common disease medicines. The most special among these is Nexplanon, which is an implant used for contraception. Organon sells its products in 60 countries.
Question 3: Why is India called the “Pharmacy of the World”?
Answer: The share of Indian drugs in the US generic drugs market is 40%, while in Europe this share is 25%. One out of every three medicines used in America is made by an Indian company. Last year alone, medicines worth ₹99,000 crore were exported from India to the US. Sun Pharma, Aurobindo, Dr. Companies like Reddy’s and Lupine are big players in both these markets.
Question 4: How did Sun Pharma become the country’s number one pharmaceutical company?
Answer: Sun Pharma has acquired six companies in 16 years. In 2013, Ranbaxy was the largest company in the country; But, in 2014, Sun Pharma bought that company. The company’s global reputation was further strengthened by the acquisition of American biopharmaceutical company Checkpoint Therapeutics in 2025.
The company was started with a loan of ₹10,000
Sun Pharma founder Dilip Sanghvi (71) is originally from Amreli district of Gujarat. His entire family currently lives in Mumbai. Here’s an interesting anecdote from his early days: In 1983, Dilip, along with five friends, borrowed ₹10,000 from his father Shantilal—a pharmaceutical businessman himself—and founded Sun Pharma in a single room. At that time, he worked as a salesman himself, visiting doctors—much like a Medical Representative (MR)—to describe and promote his medicines. In the year 1993, Dilip planned to launch a drug named Clozapine for the treatment of schizophrenia. But, they soon learned that a rival company, Sandoz, was also preparing to launch the same drug in 22 cities. Shanghvi quickly changed his strategy and launched the drug three weeks before the deadline.
Source of national pride: Sun Pharma ready to join the ranks of companies like Pfizer
Jamtre Seth of Choice Institutional Equity says that Organon is expected to generate revenue of ₹ 58,000 crore. This deal shows that Indian companies now have the economic power to buy American and European pharmaceutical companies. With this, Sun Pharma will join the league of companies like Pfizer and Novartis.
India can also emerge as a global power in the field of innovative and specialty medicines. However, the deal is still pending approval from regulatory authorities in several countries. In the US, the Federal Trade Commission will closely scrutinize the deal to ensure it does not reduce market competition.
