Goldman Sachs invests $20M in BPL Medical Technologies

By TEAM VCC

  • 17 May 2013

BPL Medical Technologies, a medical device manufacturer and a group company of BPL Ltd, has raised an equity commitment of Rs 110 crore (approximately $20 million) from Goldman Sachs.

The funds will be used to expand the company’s medical devices business and is subject to customary approvals, according to a statement.

Goldman Sachs’ investment in BPL Medical is the second such investment by a global private equity major in India’s fledgling medical devices and instruments manufacturing sector. TPG Capital has recently picked up stake in Sutures India, a Bangalore-based firm manufacturing surgical consumables.

Established in 1963, BPL Medical started manufacturing precision electrical instruments and diversified into medical devices in 1967. The company’s products include electrocardiographs, patient monitors, defibrillators, central nursing stations, stress test systems, oxygenerators, ultrasound scanners, colposcopes, foetal monitors, foetal Dopplers and X-ray machines.

“This landmark investment reinforces our vision to build on the BPL brand and well-established sales and service network to create India’s leading, indigenous medical device company. We are keen to partner with Goldman Sachs to expand our product range and geographic footprint,” said Ajit Nambiar, chairman and managing director of BPL.

“This investment reflects our continued focus on the Indian healthcare sector where we will continue to fund segments that have a great need and large untapped potential. Leveraging our global healthcare expertise and relationships, we are excited to partner with the BPL Group to build a high quality medical device leader in India,” said Ankur Sahu, Goldman Sachs’ co-head of private equity in Asia.

Sahu and Harsh Nanda, an executive director at Goldman Sachs, will join the board of BPL Medical as part of the deal.

This is the second investment by Goldman Sachs in India after it put in $110 million in the cable television company DEN Networks Ltd last week. The firm has taken an exposure to healthcare services with investments in short-stay surgical care and fertility clinics company Nova Medical Centres and Max India, which has operations in healthcare and insurance space.

(Edited by Sanghamitra Mandal)