The following article is for educational purposes ONLY. Each and every piece of information used henceforth in this article is sourced from the RHP.
Molbio Diagnostics Limited is filing a ~₹940 Cr which opened for subscription on 10th August, 2026. The company has deployed over 12,500 battery-operated 'Truenat' PCR devices across 90+ countries to combat various diseases.
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Introduction
India carries roughly a quarter of the world’s active Tuberculosis (TB) cases, a disease that kills over 4,000 people a day worldwide.
For decades, the main problem in fighting TB is the diagnosis: getting an accurate molecular test result to a patient in a village clinic without a laboratory, a trained technician, or reliable electricity.
Molbio Diagnostics Limited has built a battery-operated PCR device which gives diagnostic of multiple diseases like TB, HIV, Covid-19, Rabies etc.
Molbio’s ‘Truenat’ platform delivers a molecular test result in about 60 minutes at the point of care.
Molbio is now coming to the market with an IPO consisting of a Fresh Issue of ~₹200 Cr and an Offer for Sale of ~₹740 Cr.
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The Business Model
Molbio’s moat lies in the fact that it sells a device that only works with its own test kits.
Molbio sells the Truenat hardware, which includes
a) “sample-preparation device” called Trueprep
b) PCR analyzer called Truelab, and no other company’s kits fit this hardware.So, once a hospital or lab buys the device, it has to keep buying Molbio’s own test kits for every test it runs.
This gives Molbio repeat, recurring revenue. In fact, test kits made up a vast majority of revenue in FY26, even more than devices.
This is popularly known as the “razor & blade” model (people buy a razor just once, but they spend regularly on new blades, which becomes the main source for the company’s revenue).
Molbio sells mainly to the government, and international aid agencies, procuring contracts through government tenders.
The company has sold over 12,500 devices across more than 90 countries and its TB test chip is the only one from an Indian company endorsed by the World Health Organization for initial TB diagnosis.
Going beyond its core diagnostics business, Malbio has two more subsidiaries, Prognosys (digital X-ray and imaging) and OptraScan (digital pathology).
Molbio manufactures across six facilities in Goa, Bengaluru, Visakhapatnam and Pune, and carries out R&D through its subsidiary, Bigtec.
Unit Economics: Per Test Kit Sold
Revenue per test kit fell from ₹628 in FY24 to ₹590 in FY26, a decline of about 6%, as the average selling price per kit came down.
Raw material cost per kit also fell, from ₹364 to ₹325 through FY24 to FY26, while other expenses per kit moved erratically, dropping to ₹315 in FY25 before rising back to ₹371 in FY26.
As a result, adj. EBITDA Margin per kit slipped from 44% in FY24 to 40% in FY26, even as absolute adj. EBITDA per kit kept rising.
Operating Metrics
Revenue from test kits is still the biggest contributor by far, from 68% in FY24 to 74% i n FY25 and FY26. Note that ‘Others’ primarily includes devices manufactured by subsidiary Prognosys.
Export revenue nearly doubled between FY24 and FY25, from 10% in FY24 to 19% in FY25, before falling back in FY26 to 10%.
Molbio’s R&D spend rose steadily, from ₹60 Cr in FY24 to ₹87 Cr in FY26, a 45% increase over two years. Most of it runs through subsidiary Bigtec, which is actually responsible for carrying out all of Mobio’s R&D activities.
The Financial Stuff
Revenue rose from ₹837 Cr in FY24 to ₹1,446 Cr in FY26, but EBITDA Margins stayed mostly flat as costs were erratic over the same period.
Profit After Tax nearly doubled from ₹84 Cr in FY24 to ₹164 Cr in FY26, but PAT Margin actually fell from 13% in FY25 to 11% in FY26.
Molbio Diagnosis’ Peers (FY26)
Molbio at ₹1,446 Cr, is above Vijaya Diagnostics in terms of Revenue, but below Dr. Lal PathLabs and Metropolis, both of which are older, more diversified businesses.
Molbio’s EBITDA Margin of 23% trails every disclosed peer, well behind Vijaya Diagnostics’ 40% and even Dr. Lal PathLabs at 26%.
Molbio’s PAT Margin of 11% is also the lowest in the peer set.
Key Risks
Customer concentration: Government and international aid agencies accounted for a huge portion of FY26 revenue. A delayed tender or a policy shift could affect revenue and profits meaningfully.
Supplier concentration: Top 10 suppliers accounted for 59% of raw material and component purchases in FY26. Molbio has no long-term supply agreements and buys solely through purchase orders, leaving it exposed to price increases or supply disruptions.
Conclusion
Molbio has built one of the few Indian-made rapid molecular diagnostic platforms with genuine international regulatory recognition, and its closed device-plus-kit model gives it a recurring revenue base.
Disclaimer
This content is based on publicly available information contained in the Red Herring Prospectus (RHP) and is intended solely for educational and informational purposes. It should not be construed as investment advice, recommendation or solicitation to invest.
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Source: Red Herring Prospectus (RHP) of Molbio Diagnostics Limited