Bira 91's name change triggered a regulatory crisis that exposed a company already broken

Bira 91 was launched in 2015 by Ankur Jain and grew rapidly to become India's best-known craft beer brand, selling 9 million cases by 2023 and reaching a market capitalisation of roughly ₹4,370 crore. The company behind the brand, B9 Beverages, was backed by marquee investors — Sequoia Capital (now Peak XV Partners), Kirin Holdings, Sofina — and had expanded into seven countries.

In December 2022, B9 Beverages changed its corporate name from B9 Beverages Private Limited to B9 Beverages Limited — a routine corporate formality. But under India's state-by-state excise system, the new name was treated as a new legal entity. The company was forced to reapply for every excise licence, label approval, and product registration from scratch in every state where it sold beer. Sales were halted, and roughly ₹80 crore worth of stock expired while the company scrambled to re-register.

The name-change crisis, however, was only the trigger. The company was already brittle. Bira 91 depended on Andhra Pradesh for roughly 40% of its sales. When a new state government invited competing brands, market share in that state collapsed from 40% to 12%. The company's own brewery in Mysore ran at less than 20% capacity. The company had hired BCG for a ₹10 crore consultancy project but continued to operate with a centralised, founder-led management that insiders described as an 'echo chamber'.

By 2024, the cracks were visible everywhere. PF contributions had not been credited since April 2024. TDS worth roughly ₹50 crore for 50+ employees was not deposited. Employee count dropped from 700 to about 200. The company's auditor flagged that net worth was 'fully eroded', with cumulative losses exceeding ₹2,100 crore and total liabilities surpassing ₹1,400 crore. Unlisted shares lost roughly 70% of their value in three years. In July 2026, founder Ankur Jain exited the board and the promoter family agreed to surrender a 17.8% stake as part of a settlement.