Private equity firm IDFC Alternatives has invested Rs 75 crore ($11 million) for a minority stake in ASG Eye Hospitals Pvt Ltd, the company said in a media statement.
This is the second investment from the PE firm’s fourth fund.
IDFC Alternatives – IV marked its first close at $100 million in January this year. Its first investment was a Rs 80 crore bet on Incred Finance.
The investment is predominantly a primary round with only a minor secondary component where a few old investors exited, an IDFC executive said.
“We envisage opening 20 new centres over the next three years,†Dr. Arun Singhvi, the founder and director of ASG said in the statement.
VCCircle had reported exclusively in March 2017 that the Rajasthan-based eye care chain had hired investment bank Allegro Advisors for a fresh capital raise.
Previously, ASG Eye Hospitals had received its first external funding of about $11 million in two tranches from Sequoia Capital India Advisors Pvt Ltd in 2012, according to VCCEdge, the data and research platform of News Corp VCCircle.
The hospital chain has 24 operating centres across nine Indian states, in addition to a centre in Kampala, Uganda, the firm said. The chain is founded by Dr. Singhvi and Dr. Shashank Gang, who are alumni of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi.
Other investor-backed eye care chains include New Delhi-based Centre For Sight, which received approval to list last year, but the company eventually scrapped the plan.
In June 2017, VCCircle exclusively reported that Japanese company Hoya Corp had acquired a stake in eye care firm Eye-Q Vision Pvt Ltd for $12 million (Rs 78 crore).
Earlier, Hong Kong-based private equity firm ADV Partners invested around $45 million in Chennai-based Dr Agarwal’s Healthcare Ltd, paving the way for the exit of Evolvence India Life Sciences Fund.
Prior to re-joining Infosys, chairman Nandan Nilekani had invested an undisclosed amount in Disha Medical Services Pvt. Ltd, an eye-care chain focussed on providing affordable treatment in underserved markets.
