Adar Poonawalla buys London's most expensive house for Rs. 1,446cr
Billionaire Adar Poonawalla, the CEO of Serum Institute of India (SII), has reportedly finalized a deal to buy London's priciest house sold this year, worth £138 million (Rs. 1,446 crore). Reportedly, the nearly 100-year-old Aberconway House near Hyde Park bagged the title of the most expensive house in 2023. A CNBC report stated that Serum Life Sciences, a UK subsidiary of the Poonawalla family's SII, will acquire the property, making it the second-most expensive home ever sold in London.
Previous record-breaking London property sale
In January 2020, London's most expensive residential transaction took place when 2-8a Rutland Gate was sold for a staggering £210 million (nearly Rs. 2,200 crore). Initially thought to have belonged to former Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz's estate, it was later revealed that Hui Ka Yan, founder and chair of China Evergrande, was the actual buyer.
Serum Institute's expansion plans
SII, a family business that originated from racehorse breeding, became the world's largest vaccine manufacturer by creating affordable vaccines for developing countries. In a Bloomberg interview, Poonawalla disclosed that over the next three years, the Pune-based company intends to produce yellow fever and dengue vaccines for travelers visiting countries where these diseases are prevalent. This initiative would introduce higher-margin products to the company's expanding portfolio of immunizations, including a sub-$4 malaria vaccine approved by the World Health Organization this week.
