New Delhi, July 8 -- Mumbai-based Inventia Healthcare Ltd, a drug development and manufacturing company backed by US-based buyout firm Platinum Equity, returned to revenue growth and turned net cash positive in the financial year ended March 2026, VCCircle has learnt.

The company's consolidated revenue rose 21.8% year-on-year to more than Rs 708 crore in FY26, according to preliminary figures reviewed by VCCircle. The return to growth follows a weak FY25, when revenue declined after several key customers reduced purchases because they had accumulated excess inventory.

Inventia attributed the recovery to deeper customer engagement through proactive outreach, stronger customer relationships, improved supply reliability and an expanded product portfolio. Even so, FY26 revenue remained below the level achieved in FY24.

"Improved cross-functional execution enabled the timely - and in several cases, early - launch of new products, further supporting revenue growth," said Pavan Bhat, managing director and CEO of Inventia Healthcare.

Operating performance also improved, helped by higher capacity utilization, a favourable product mix and cost optimization. EBITDA is estimated to have increased about 45% year-on-year to more than Rs 113 crore in FY26 from around Rs 78 crore in FY25, according to preliminary data and VCCircle's research.

Profit margin expanded to about 16% from 13% a year earlier due to operating leverage benefits, VCCircle has learnt.

Background and funding

Inventia was founded in 1985 by its late chairman and managing director Janak Shah and executive director Maya Shah. The company, which operates a manufacturing facility in Ambernath and an R&D centre in Thane, partners with over 100 customers, supplying semi-finished and finished oral solid dosage (OSD) formulations across both conventional and value-added generic products.

Its customers include multinational and domestic pharmaceutical companies, selling products in more than 40 countries across North America, South America, Europe, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

In 2008, mid-market private equity firm Jacob Ballas invested Rs 90 crore in the company. A decade later, Inventia explored a public listing but did not proceed with the plan. In 2020, InvAscent joined the cap table, investing Rs 100 crore ($13.4 million then).

In 2024, Platinum Equity acquired a controlling stake in Inventia's core oral solid dosage business from InvAscent, Jacob Ballas and affiliates of the founding Shah family in a deal that valued the company at around Rs 2,500 crore. The founding family currently holds a minority stake. Last year, Platinum Equity onboarded a new management led by former NATCO Pharma executive vice president Pavan Bhat.

Financials, growth drivers

Inventia's exports grew 27% in FY26 and contributed about 90% of total revenue, driven by healthy demand in key export markets, VCCircle has learnt. The company also turned net cash positive during the year.

"The company's transition to a net cash-positive position was driven by a combination of improved EBITDA performance, disciplined working capital management, focussed efforts on receivables recovery and collections, and overall cash flow optimization," Bhat said in response to VCCircle's queries. He added that the Indian rupee's depreciation against the US dollar also had a favourable impact on revenue and profitability.

North America, comprising the US and Canada, accounted for 39% of revenue in FY26, up from 24% a year ago. On the other hand, Latin America's contribution dipped to 20% from 23%, it is learnt.

The core business, excluding revenue generated through profit-sharing arrangements, also recorded an improvement in gross margins, which rose to 57% in FY26 from 55% in FY25 and 50% in FY24.

Despite the return to growth in FY26, Inventia's revenue grew at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of only about 7% between FY22 and FY26 due to volatility in exports and the company's significant exposure to regulated markets, according to VCCircle's calculations.

However, revenue growth is expected to strengthen over the medium term, supported by the company's continued investment in research and development (R&D), a stronger product pipeline, deeper customer engagement, faster regulatory filings, and the commercialization of new products.

Expansion plans

Inventia has several products under development. As of FY26, six products were pending approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA), while another nine were in the development pipeline, VCCircle has learnt.

The company plans to continue investing heavily in R&D and manufacturing infrastructure, with annual capital expenditure of about Rs 100 crore through FY30. It expects to fund these investments while keeping net leverage below 1x.

Bhat said Inventia has refined its R&D strategy to expand its focus on complex generics and address larger market opportunities. The company also plans to offer CDMO solutions for complex generics through additional technology investments.

Further, Inventia is evaluating inorganic growth opportunities through acquisitions. However, such transactions are not expected to materially weaken its credit profile, given the equity support available from its promoters. That said, a person familiar with the matter, told VCCircle that no acquisition plans have progressed to an advanced stage so far.

"Any inorganic investments the company pursues will be carefully evaluated for their strategic fit and are expected to be complementary and synergistic to our existing businesses, capabilities and long-term objectives," Bhat said.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from VC Circle.