London, Nov. 23 (PTI): Indian entrepreneur Karan Bilimoria has put Cobra, the beer company he founded 18 years ago, up for sale for an estimated £200 million (Rs 1,500 crore).

The company, famous for supplying beer to most of the 10,000-odd curry houses in Britain, said in a statement that its board had appointed investment banking organisation Rothschild “to assist with planning for the next stage of its development”.

“Cobra beer is looking at a strategic partnership or a sale in order to achieve the full potential of the business,” the statement said.

The decision comes shortly after Cobra raised fresh capital of £15 million through private placement of equity to fund expansion.

Bilimoria had said last week that he was approached by Diageo, the world’s biggest spirits producer, for a stake in Cobra, but the talks had failed.

Cobra remains one of the top 15 beer brands in the UK and is making its presence felt in the Indian market, where the company plans to increase capacity to 10 million cases in the next four years from the current 1.75 million cases.

Although Cobra is yet to make a profit, it is one of the UK’s fastest growing beer brands in a market that is in overall decline. With sales of £177.6 million, the company has grown by 28 per cent in the past year, according to data research firm AC Nielsen.

Bilimoria is Cobra’s largest shareholder with about two-thirds of the shares.

Rothschild will soon begin contacting potential buyers, including international brewers such as Carlsberg, Heineken, InBev and Molson Coors.