Bira 91 Raises Rs 335 Cr Led by Belgian Family-owned Fund Sofina

Indian beer brand, B9 Beverages that owns and sells the Bira 91 brand of beers, has raised $50 million (Rs 335 crore), led by a Belgian family-owned fund Sofina, at around $210 million (Rs 1,400 crore) valuation. The round also saw participation from existing investor Sequoia Capital. Bira 91 which competes with other premium beers like Budweiser and Kingfisher Ultra, is looking to expand distribution, enhance production and enter lucrative markets like the US, Thailand, Hong Kong and Singapore. 

Post this investment, Sofina will own a 28% stake in the company while Ankur Jain (Founder & CEO) and the promoter group of B9 Beverages will own 30% stake.

In last financial year, Bira 91's revenues stood at Rs 165 crore, up from Rs 30 crore in the previous fiscal 2017. The New Delhi-headquartered company which sold 2.7 million cases of beer in the previous fiscal, is aiming to manufacture 2 million cases per month. 

B9 has raised more than $100 million since its inception in mid 2015. The company currently sells five variants of its beer across seven states covering 15 Indian cities. Its top selling cities include Bengaluru and Delhi. It has also launched its brand in New York, New Jersey, Boston and Philadelphia in the US.

Founded and led by Delhi-based entrepreneur Ankur Jain, B9 Beverages expects its India business to break even in fiscal 2019 and revenue to more than double to about $61.5 million. 

Sofina — a growth-stage investor that has backed companies like Flipkart, Byju’s, Prato and Hector Beverages which owns ethnic drinks brand Paper Boat, will help Bira 91's scale in India and abroad.