Asiatic Laboratories IPO subscription to run during 4-8 Feb

The initial public offering (IPO) subscription for shares of pharmaceutical company Asiatic Laboratories would start on 4 February and continue till 8 February. 

According to the stock market regulator's consent letter, for buying shares local investors should have a minimum Tk50,000 investment in the secondary market of the stock exchanges, and the non-resident Bangladeshis should have Tk1 lakh on 8 January or 25 January. 

 Minimum and maximum amount allowed for subscription for the general investors would be Tk10,000. 

On 31 August 2022, the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission allowed Asiatic Laboratories to determine the cut-off price of its shares through bidding by eligible investors – a requirement for going public under the book-building method.

The cut-off price of the shares of Asiatic Laboratories was fixed at Tk50 each through the electronic subscription system by eligible investors.

The general investors would be able buy the shares of the company at Tk20, as per the rule set by Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission.

In January, the securities regulator had suspended the company's IPO subscription over allegations of false land ownership and inaccurate financials.

The commission then formed a probe committee to investigate the matter, and the committee uncovered false documents related to land ownership, inaccurate financial statements, and fraudulent reports of share money deposits submitted by Asiatic Laboratories.

Due to violations of securities laws and proven allegations, the regulator in October imposed a fine of Tk50 lakh on each of the company's directors and the issue manager.

Additionally, Managing Director Monir Ahmed, the company's chief financial officer, and company secretary each faced fines of Tk25 lakh due to their roles as signatories in the prospectus.

The issue manager Shahjalal Equity Management was also fined Tk50 lakh for its false due diligence.

In November last year, the commission withdrew the suspension on Asiatic's IPO subscription. 

Then Asiatic Laboratories filed for IPO to raise Tk95 crore from the capital market and use the funds mainly to launch anticancer drug production.

It will use Tk58.05 crore for acquisition and installation of machinery, Tk6.26 crore for factory construction, and Tk28 crore for repayment of bank loans.

Asiatic Laboratories is engaged in the production and marketing of different types of tablets, capsules, syrups, creams, eyecare products, injections, and more.

At present, the company produces 6 million tablets, 5 million capsules, 2 million injections, 1.5 million tube creams, and 1.6 million bottles of syrup every year.