Temasek backed Cloudnine leads race to acquire ART Fertility for $400 mn
The deal, valuing Art Fertility at $400 million, has also seen interest from IVI, a European strategic investor, four people with knowledge of the development said on the condition of anonymity.
'The binding bids have come in. There are two final bidders. Cloudnine is likely the frontrunner," the first person cited above said. The deal will give existing investor Gulf Capital an exit.
Also read: Temasek, ADIA race to invest up to $300mn in medical equipment firm Micro Life
'Temasek is expected to double down on its investment in Cloudnine to help the company fund the acquisition," the people cited above said. 'The acquisition involves ART Fertility's entire business, comprising Middle Eastern and Indian divisions."
Investment bank Moelis & Co. is running the mandate for the transaction.
While spokespersons for Temasek and Moelis declined to comment, queries emailed to Cloudnine, ART Fertility and Gulf Capital did not elicit any response.
Temasek's new capital infusion comes less than a year after the Singapore government's investment arm bought nearly a 20% stake in Bengaluru-based Cloudnine for around $125 million. The deal, which valued the specialist mother and baby care hospital at around $600 million, gave early-stage venture capital firm Peak XV an exit from the company after 11 years.
Founded in 2006 by Dr. R Kishore Kumar, Rohit M.A., M. Ramachandra and Vidya Kumar, Cloudnine is a chain of super-specialty hospitals catering to fertility, maternity care, gynaecology, paediatrics, neonatology, baby care and stem cell banking. Currently, it has 34 centres across Indian cities, including Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Gurgaon, Ludhiana and Chandigarh. Twelve of the centres are in Bengaluru.
Also read: Bain held on to Emcure after the IPO. Here's what's next.
ART Fertility was established as an extension to IVI RMA Global, a company focused on assisted reproduction technology (ART), in 2015 under the brand name IVI Middle East. About five years later, Gulf Capital bought IVI RMA's stake and rebranded the company to ART Fertility.
For Cloudnine, the acquisition comes at a time when it's realigning its cap table ahead of a public listing that is expected later this year. This would be the hospital chain's second attempt at an initial public offering (IPO). In 2022, it had filed draft papers for a ₹1,200 crore IPO.
Cloudnine will leverage ART Fertility's presence in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and Dubai, alongside 11 clinics across India in cities including Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai and Ahmedabad. Its clinics have seen a swift expansion to become one of the leading players in the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent, with plans to extend services further across the globe, Gulf Capital said in a statement in November 2023.
Kids Clinic India Ltd, which operates Cloudnine, reported a consolidated revenue of $145.3 million in FY24 as compared with $119.8 million a year earlier. It narrowed its losses to $3.4 million from a loss of $5.3 million in FY23, according to data from Tracxn.
Also read: Dialysis chain NephroPlus engages bankers for a $200-250 mn IPO
ICRA noted last year that Kids Clinic will benefit from healthy revenue growth on a steady ramp-up at the existing centres and improving revenue share from new centres. The diversification of its presence across various parts of northern, western and southern India, coupled with plans to set up more units in metros and tier I cities, will also add to its growth.
With continuous expansion in recent years resulting in a sizable loss from new centres, its return on capital employed (ROCE) has been low in FY23 and FY24, ICRA said in the note. However, a robust scale of operations, gradual improvement in profit margins of new centres and stable margins of existing areas will support the improvement in ROCE over the medium term, the credit rating firm said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fibre2Fashion
17 minutes ago
- Fibre2Fashion
Trump hints US may not opt for additional secondary tariffs on India
President Donald Trump recently dropped a hint that the United States may not go ahead with additional secondary tariffs on countries that continue to purchase crude oil from Russia. The hint came following his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska that ended without any deal to stop the Russia-Ukraine war. Following President Donald Trump's recent meeting with President Vladimir Putin in Alaska , the former‎ dropped a hint that the US may not go ahead with additional secondary tariffs on countries that continue to purchase crude oil from Russia. "If I have to do it, I'll do it. Maybe I won't have to do it," Trump told a US TV channel. He brushed aside questions about similar penalties for China. "Well, he [Putin] lost an oil client, so to speak, which is India, which was doing about 40 per cent of the oil. China, as you know, is doing a lot. And if I did what's called a secondary sanction, or a secondary tariff, it would be very devastating from their standpoint. If I have to do it, I'll do it. Maybe I won't have to do it," Trump told a US TV channel. This might be a relief for India as there had been worries that the country could face fresh penalties if Washington enforced penalty sanctions. A 25-per cent duty on Indian imports took effect on August 7. Trump later announced an additional 25-per cent levy due to Indian oil purchases from Russia, bringing the total tariff burden on Indian goods exported to the United States to 50 per cent. The second round of duties will start from August 27. Trump also brushed aside questions about similar penalties for China, saying, 'I don't have to think about that now.' Before the Trump-Putin talks, US treasury secretary Scott Bessent had cautioned that if the discussions failed, Washington could raise secondary sanctions on India for purchasing Russian oil. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
an hour ago
- First Post
US suspends visas for Gazans after far-right influencer posts over medical evacuations
The US has suspended visitor visas for people from Gaza following criticism from far-right influencer Laura Loomer over the admission of wounded Palestinians for medical treatment. Palestinians carry aid supplies that entered Gaza through Israel, in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip. Reuters The United States government announced on Saturday that it is suspending visitor visas for people from Gaza, after a far-right influencer with close ties to President Donald Trump criticised the admission of wounded Palestinians for medical treatment. The move followed a series of angry social media posts by Laura Loomer, who has previously promoted racist conspiracy theories and falsely claimed the 9/11 attacks were an inside job. 'All visitor visas for individuals from Gaza are being stopped while we conduct a full and thorough review of the process and procedures used to issue a small number of temporary medical-humanitarian visas in recent days,' the State Department, led by Marco Rubio, posted on X. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD On Friday, Loomer had urged the department to halt visas for Palestinians from Gaza, alleging they were 'pro-HAMAS… affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood and funded by Qatar,' though she offered no evidence. Her criticism was directed at the US-based charity HEAL Palestine, which last week said it had facilitated the arrival of 11 severely injured children from Gaza, along with their caregivers and siblings, for treatment in American hospitals. The charity described it as 'the largest single medical evacuation of injured children from Gaza to the US.'
Economic Times
an hour ago
- Economic Times
From Wimbledon to F1: Surprises for staff bringing their A-game
Synopsis Companies are increasingly rewarding top performers with all-expense-paid experiential trips, moving beyond traditional gifts. Hero Future Energies sent employees to Wimbledon, while others offer luxury travel to global sporting events. Travel operators report a surge in demand for these incentive tours, with sports proving a powerful motivator across various industries. Companies offer luxury trips to top empolyees Corporate rewards and recognition (R&R) programmes are no longer about gift vouchers, gold coins, or a pat on the back. From Wimbledon to Formula 1 and even cricket on ice in Switzerland, companies are increasingly sending top performers on all-expense-paid experiential trips. Hero Future Energies, for instance, recently sponsored the winners of its 'Chairman's Challenge' to watch the Wimbledon Tennis Championship, while firms like Mankind Pharma and Sterlite Group are offering key employees luxury trips to international destinations and global sporting events. Travel operators like Thomas Cook and SOTC say demand for such experiential R&R tours to both domestic and international locations has surged in recent months. 'Sports is proving to be a powerful driver for the incentive-reward programmes,' said Rajeev Kale, president and country head – holidays, MICE, visa, at Thomas Cook (India).This July, Hero Future Energies (HFE), Hero Group's renewable energy arm, sent eight employees to London to watch Wimbledon for their 'outstanding performance' in the areas of AI, process automation and digitisation. 'This was a fully sponsored trip covering travel, accommodation, registration, and related expenses,' Bhawna Kirpal Mital, chief HR officer of HFE, told ET. Companies across industries from pharmaceuticals and information technology (IT) to services sectors and banking, financial service and insurance (BFSI) are increasingly sending employees on domestic and international trips, according to travel companies.'What started as a domestic outing, and then exotic international destinations, has now evolved to truly experiential events,' said SD Nandakumar, president and country head – holidays and corporate tours, at SOTC Travel. Corporates are sponsoring fully paid luxury tours to sporting events like F1 races (Abu Dhabi, Singapore, Bahrain, and Italy's Monza circuits), Grand Slam tennis events such as Wimbledon and the Australian Open, European club football, and cricket, Nandakumar said. Amid rising corporate demand, Thomas Cook is organising sports-led experiential trips, such as a buy-out of Auckland's Eden Park for a private corporate cricket match, complete with Indian chefs at live cooking counters, professional commentators, and VIP interactions with celebrity players. The company grabbed 'uber premium grandstand seating' at the British Silverstone F1 Grand Prix, and held private rugby matches in New Zealand, ice-hockey showdowns in Prague, and a cricket match on ice in Switzerland. 'It's no longer just about travel; it's about creating transformative journeys that inspire, connect, and celebrate top performers,' Kale said. Prateek Dubey, global CHRO at Mankind Pharma, said international trips and global event participation are among the firm's recognition initiatives for employees this year. 'The destinations are curated to offer unforgettable and culturally rich experiences — ranging from global cities to iconic events,' he said. These include select international conferences, leadership summits, Mankind's flagship Medal Meet. 'It also includes immersive experiences that combine leisure with learning opportunities,' Dubey said. The design and engineering team at Resonia (part of Sterlite Group) recently presented a paper on its Mumbai Urja Marg project at the CIGRE Norway Symposium 2025, said Ruhie Pande, group CHRO of Sterlite Electric, Resonia and Serentica Renewables. Sterlite Group also sends employees to international conferences for spotting new trends, presenting papers, and attending. Sterlite Group also organises all-expense-paid team off-sites, Pande said.
