COVID vaccine maker Adar Poonawalla to buy London’s most expensive house

Serum Institute of India (SII) CEO Adar Poonawalla is all set to buy the most expensive house in London. If reports are to be believed then  Poonawalla has closed a deal at Rs 1446 crore according to a report in Financial Times. Adar Poonawalla is the CEO of Serum Institute of India (SII), which makes the Covishield vaccine. According to the report, the expensive London House will be acquired by Serum Life Sciences, a UK subsidiary of the Adar Poonawalla family’s Serum Institute of India (SII). This deal will make Aberconway House the second-most expensive home ever sold in London.

The priciest residential transaction in London occurred in January 2020 when 2-8a Rutland Gate was sold for a record-breaking £210 million. Originally attributed to the estate of the former Saudi Arabian crown prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz, recent revelations disclosed that the actual buyer was Hui Ka Yan, the founder and chair of Evergrande. A person close to Serum Life Sciences told FT that the Poonawalla family had "no plans" to move to the UK permanently, but that "the house will serve as a base for the company and family when they are in the UK". Adar Poonawalla is the son of Cyrus Poonawalla, the founder of the Serum Institute of India.Adar Poonawalla joined the Serum Institute of India in 2001 and became the CEO of Serum Institute with complete control of the day-to-day operations of the company in 2011.Poonawalla joined the Serum Institute of India in 2001 after graduating from university. Then exporting its products to 35 countries, Poonawalla concentrated on the company's international market, new products license and getting pre-qualified by the World Health Organization for supply to United Nations Agencies including UNICEF and PAHO. As of 2015, he has helped the company export its products to over 140 countries; 85 percent of its revenues are from overseas. On 31 May 2021, he was appointed as the chairman of Poonawalla Fincorp, after acquiring a 66% stake in the financial services company.