IndiaMART is working with Novo Nordisk to halt illegal Wegovy sales -source

IndiaMART InterMESH

18/12/2023 01:00

By Rishika  Sadam
       HYDERABAD, India, Dec 18 (Reuters) - Indian online
marketplace IndiaMART  INMR.NS  has been removing unauthorized
listings of Novo Nordisk's  NOVOb.CO  blockbuster weight-loss
drug Wegovy after holding talks with the Danish drugmaker in
early October, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters.
    The drugmaker's India legal team held discussions with
IndiaMART's top executives to develop a "framework" for 
regularly alerting the online marketplace about listings by
counterfeiters in an effort to curtail illegal sales, the source
said on condition of anonymity.
    Novo Nordisk is the sole patent holder of semaglutide, the
active ingredient in both Wegovy and Novo's diabetes drug
Ozempic, which are not yet approved for sale in India. A
spokesman for Novo India did not respond to multiple requests
seeking comment.
    "Dozens of such listings have been removed from the platform
after Novo reached out to IndiaMART saying the sellers do not
hold the trademark for Wegovy," the source said without
providing a specific number.
    Extraordinary demand for Novo's weight-loss drugs has been
fueling a global surge in counterfeit versions.
    Novo's global spokesperson said the drugmaker regularly
looks for suspicious or illegal online sales and "where
possible" engages with these platforms on a protocol to ensure
they work to prevent or respond to such illegal offers. The
company did not comment on specific efforts in India.
    In late September, Novo Nordisk's India Managing Director
Vikrant Shrotriya told Reuters the illegal sellers were
"difficult to trace."
    IndiaMART, one of India's top online marketplaces, allows
dealers to sell on its website after a nominal background check
and says it has minimal control over what is advertised and
sold.
    A leading U.S. government agency named IndiaMART on its
'Notorious Markets' list for 2022, highlighting how counterfeit
goods on the marketplace remained "a serious concern".
    A Reuters review found dozens of listings featuring Wegovy,
Ozempic and claims of copies of semaglutide by a
Bangladesh-based firm on IndiaMART between September and
November. While it has taken many of them down, some remain on
the website.
    
    ROOM FOR IMPORT 
    Novo introduced Wegovy in the U.S. in 2021 and has since
launched the drug in several European markets, but has struggled
 to meet soaring demand fueled by a global obesity crisis. The
once-weekly injection has been shown in clinical trials to help
a patient lose up to 15% of their body weight. 
    Wegovy, Ozempic and Eli Lilly's  LLY.N  Mounjaro and
Zepbound belong to a class of therapies known as GLP-1 receptor
agonists originally developed to control blood sugar in patients
 with type 2 diabetes. But they also slow digestion, helping
patients feel full longer.
    Indian law allows drugs approved in foreign countries to be
imported and sold in the country after obtaining an import
license from the drug regulator by the original drug
manufacturer's partner in India.
    Novo aims to officially launch Wegovy in India in 2026 after
securing regulatory approvals, Shrotriya has said.
    Certain provisions of the law also allow drugs that have not
been formally approved by the Indian drug regulator to be
imported for individual use, provided patients make an appeal
with valid prescriptions and proof of identity.
    India's Central Drugs Standard Control Organization did not
respond to Reuters' requests seeking comment.
    A box of legally imported Wegovy containing three injection
pens costs around 1200 euros ($1,309) including shipping
charges, according to Indian Pharma Network, a New Delhi-based
private firm that helps with importing medicines.
    On IndiaMART, a box containing four pens claiming to be
Wegovy is being sold for 18,000 Indian rupees ($216.50) and
higher.
    Much like in the U.S. and elsewhere, Wegovy and Ozempic have
made their way into India's elite social circles and among
celebrities. Many well-heeled Indians procure the drug through
local suppliers or friends visiting from foreign cities, doctors
and fitness experts have told local media.
    "Such products automatically make it to gray market sale.
There's a craze for Wegovy among people after much hype from
celebrities," a Hyderabad-based bariatric surgeon said on
condition of anonymity. "Only India's affluent can afford to use
it given the high price."
    
($1 = 83.1400 Indian rupees)

($1 = 0.9164 euros)

    <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
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    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
 (Reporting by Rishika Sadam in Hyderabad; Additional reporting
by Maggie Fick in London; Editing by Michele Gershberg, Dhanya
Skariachan and Bill Berkrot)
 ((Rishika.S@thomsonreuters.com;))