AkzoNobel Subsidiary's Revenue Increased to 3.4 Billion RMB Last Year, Plans to Sell Business

On May 14, AkzoNobel India released its financial performance report for FY 2025. In Q4 of FY 2025, the revenue reached INR 10.221 billion, a 5% year-on-year increase; Earnings Before Interest and Taxes (EBIT) stood at INR 1.371 billion, a 2% decrease year-on-year. For the 2024-25 fiscal year, the revenue was INR 40.912 billion (approximately USD 4.774 billion), a 3% year-on-year growth; EBIT was INR 5.699 billion, a decrease of 0.5%; and net profit attributable to the parent company was INR 4.295 billion, a 0.8% increase.

Rajiv Rajgopal, Chairman and Managing Director of AkzoNobel India, commented, "In Q4 of 2024-25, driven by double-digit growth in B2B business, the company's revenue growth outpaced the industry. In retail, the high-end categories and urban center businesses continued to grow, while demand for mass-market and economy categories was affected by competitive dynamics. In such a market environment, we maintained double-digit profitability, and our market share continued to grow. In FY 2024-25, we achieved record results in revenue, gross margin, EBIT, and PAT, marking the fourth consecutive year of record performance. At the same time, we made strategic investments to support long-term growth."

Public records show that AkzoNobel India was founded in 1911, with AkzoNobel holding 75.70% of the shares and AkzoNobel Coatings International holding about 24.30%. Currently, the company operates five major production bases, two R&D centers, and laboratories across the country, and its business includes decorative coatings, automotive and specialty coatings, industrial coatings, powder coatings, ship and protective coatings, among others. According to the financial report, the company's sales revenue for FY 2021-2024 were INR 26.618 billion, INR 24.214 billion, INR 31.486 billion, INR 38.021 billion, and INR 39.616 billion respectively.

According to a previously disclosed announcement, AkzoNobel plans to sell the decorative paint business of AkzoNobel India. According to foreign media reports, AkzoNobel is seeking to sell its stake for between USD 2.5-3 billion (approximately INR 200-240 billion). Market analysts believe this high valuation is due to the strong market positioning of the Dulux brand and AkzoNobel's long-term commitment to the Indian market.

AkzoNobel CEO Greg Poux-Guillaume said, "We are focused on enhancing our global coatings business, supported by a strong combination of high-performance brands and technologies. This strategic review represents a key step in our efforts to focus on different scale product portfolios in key coatings markets, which will help accelerate our profit growth."

Not only is AkzoNobel considering the sale of its South Asian decorative paint business, but it is also planning other strategic evaluations. On January 6 of this year, AkzoNobel India announced that its parent company, AkzoNobel, had proposed a strategic review of its powder coatings business and international research center. The proposal involves selling these assets to AkzoNobel's indirect wholly-owned subsidiary. Additionally, the proposal includes AkzoNobel India possibly acquiring the intellectual property (IP) related to decorative coatings owned by AkzoNobel.

According to the disclosed announcement, AkzoNobel plans to acquire the powder coatings business for a one-time cash consideration of INR 20.73 billion (approximately USD 250 million) through its indirect wholly-owned subsidiary, which was renamed "AkzoNobel Powder Coatings India Pvt. Ltd." on March 4, 2025. AkzoNobel Powder Coatings India Pvt. Ltd. will acquire the company's international research center (R&D) business for a one-time cash consideration of INR 700 million (approximately USD 8 million).

AkzoNobel India stated that the purpose of selling its powder coatings business is to simplify the company's operations, allowing it to strengthen its position in the liquid paints and coatings business while divesting its existing non-core assets (related to the powder coatings business), which do not provide synergies. This sale creates a more focused, efficient, and strategically aligned company, providing a clear roadmap for long-term value creation and success.

In addition, AkzoNobel Coatings International Ltd., a shareholder of AkzoNobel India, will sell and transfer the intellectual property related to the company's decorative coatings business in India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal to the company for a one-time cash consideration of INR 11.52 billion (approximately USD 136.7 million). The company stated that acquiring the intellectual property related to decorative coatings business will establish the company's technical independence in its core liquid coatings business, reduce reliance on the seller, eliminate ongoing royalty payments to the seller for the acquired intellectual property, and improve profitability and cash flow.