India Value Fund-backed Manipal Health Enterprises Ltd, which runs a country-wide hospital chain under the brand Manipal Hospitals, has invested an undisclosed amount in Ankur Healthcare Pvt Ltd, which specialises in infertility treatment.
Post the deal, Bangalore-based Ankur Healthcare will be renamed as Manipal Ankur Andrology and Reproductive Services (MAARS) and will be led by Vasan SS, founder of Ankur.
Bangalore-based Manipal Health Enterprises is part of Manipal Education and Medical Group, started by Dr TM Pai in 1953. The company has over 5,000 beds across 15 hospitals out of which it owns 11 facilities. With this investment, it has entered single specialty hospital business and allied healthcare delivery formats.
“Our new initiative will create a chain of specialty hospitals focusing on andrology reproductive medicine and men’s health in the country. Our focus on allied healthcare delivery formats will also ensure that key traits like quality, technology, ethical practice & affordable care, and values will continue as top priority,†said Rajen Padukone, managing director & chief executive officer at Manipal Health Enterprises.
With the current investment in place, Ankur plans eight more facilities (as of now, it has four centres) over the next 18-24 months. Some of these will be located within the existing Manipal hospitals while standalone centres will also come up in cities like Chennai, Pune, Hyderabad, Indore and Chandigarh, among others. The company will also look at setting up similar facilities with other hospitals. It also expects to increase its sales to Rs 100 crore over the next three years, according to Padukone.
Last year, Manipal Health Enterprises got a funding of $180 million from India Value Fund. The company is also looking at acquisition opportunities in India, Malaysia and Dubai for further growth.
Single specialty hospitals have attracted a lot of investor interest due to attractive returns on capital, easy scalability and low capital expenditure, among other factors. Some of the key investments in this space include ASG Eye Hospitals raising $5.49 million from Sequoia Capital, Mewar Orthopaedic Hospitals securing $5.46 million from Matrix India and Total Dental Care receiving $5 million from Asian Healthcare Fund.
(Edited by Sanghamitra Mandal)
