The online pharmacy space will become a hotly contested segment with Reliance Industries (RIL) now throwing its hat into the ring. Mukesh Ambani, owned conglomerate, announced on Tuesday the acquisition of a majority stake in Netmeds (Vitalic Health Pvt. Ltd.), for a cash consideration of approximately Rs 620 crore.

This investment represents 60 percent of Vitalic and 100 percent of the direct equity ownership of its subsidiaries: Tresara Health Private Limited, Netmeds Market Place Limited, and Dadha Pharma Distribution Pvt. A statement issued by RIL late at night said.

The RIL acquisition comes at a time when arch-rival Amazon has started selling pharmaceuticals in the Bangalore market. Additionally, two other prominent players, Medlife and PharmEasy, are now heading to merge to create a merger agreement, to create a large joint entity in the online pharmacy space.

"This investment aligns with our commitment to bring digital access to everyone in India. The addition of Netmeds strengthens Reliance Retail's ability to provide high-quality, affordable healthcare products and services, and expands its digital commerce offering to cover the most basic daily needs of consumers. We have been impressed by Netmeds' journey to build digital franchises nationwide in such a short time and we hope to accelerate it through our investments and partnerships, "said Isha Ambani, director of RRVL.

Promoted by Dadha Pharma, Chennai-based Netmeds is one of the earliest players in this space having incorporated in 2015. The company is said to connect customers with pharmacists and enable drugs and nutritional products to health and wellness to come to the door. To $ 100 million so far from investors like Tanncam, Sistema, and Daun Penh. To date, the company has served nearly 4 million customers in more than 610 cities and towns.

It is truly a proud moment for “Netmeds” to join the Reliance family and work together to make quality healthcare affordable and accessible to all Indians. Pradeep Dadha, founder and CEO of Netmeds, said that through the combined strength of the group's digital, retail and technology platforms, we will strive to create more value for everyone in the ecosystem while providing a superior Omni Channel experience to consumers.

The Dadha family's experience in the pharmaceutical field dates back to 1914 when they first entered the pharmaceutical retail business and then entered the pharmaceutical industry in 1972.

According to the Frost & Sullivan report, the e-pharmacies market in India is expected to reach $ 3.6 billion (Rs. 25,000 crores) by 2022, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 63 percent from 2018.

Source: Finance Yahoo

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