Cipla Emerges as Domestic Contender in Anti-Obesity Market with Yurpeak
New Delhi: India's third-largest drugmaker Cipla has made an early impact in the fast-expanding anti-obesity drug market, with its GLP-1 agonist brand Yurpeak gaining traction soon after launch, particularly across tier 2 and tier 3 cities, regions increasingly driving incremental growth in chronic therapies.
Industry data from Pharmarack shows that the anti-obesity/GLP-1 agonist segment has expanded to around Rs 1,169 crore in sales by MAT December 2025, marking one of the fastest growth trajectories within the Indian Pharma Market (IPM). Yurpeak’s early uptake positions Cipla as a key domestic contender in a category until recently dominated by multinational innovators.
The Anti-Obesity segment began gaining strong momentum from 2022, following the launch of Rybelsus (oral semaglutide) by Novo Nordisk, which significantly expanded awareness and acceptance of pharmacological obesity management.
Subsequent introduction of Injectable Semaglutide (Novo Nordisk) and Tirzepatide(Eli Lilly) enhanced dosing convenience and clinical efficacy, supported by extensive market-priming and physician education efforts by innovator companies ahead of launch.
As a predominantly premium category, the segment has delivered rapid value growth, while volumes remain measured, reflecting pricing and access dynamics.
Recent strategic partnerships by Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly with Emcure and Cipla respectively in Q4 2025, along with select brand economization, have improved penetration and accessibility; the full impact of these collaborations is expected to play out over the coming months.
For Cipla, Yurpeak’s early performance underscores a strategic push into lifestyle-linked chronic therapies—an area that is increasingly shaping the next phase of growth for India’s pharmaceutical industry.
Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonists are a class of medications utilized to treat type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and obesity. As a class of medications, they are among several pharmacological options for these endocrine diseases. The function of GLP-1 agonists is to lower serum glucose levels and thereby manage metabolism in affected patients.
