India's IIFL invests $70m in Kauvery hospital chain

Kauvery has grown from a single 30-bed hospital in 1999 to a chain of eight with 1,500 beds across six cities. The southern states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are the core markets. Operations are diversified, with an emphasis on cardiology, oncology, neurology, renal sciences, orthopaedics, and organ transplants.

The company said it planned to grow its footprint to 15 locations with more than 3,000 beds in seven cities by 2025. At this point, it hopes to pursue an IPO.

The hospital received an approximately USD 20m private equity investment in 2019 from LGT Lightstone Aspada. LGT Group had recently acquired Aspada, a digital inclusion specialist. This was the new entity’s first investment in India.

The latest deal has been described as IIFL AM’s first PE investment in a multi-speciality hospital. In December 2021, it backed a local dialysis clinic chain, NephroPlus, alongside Investcorp and Bessemer Venture Partners.

"Our investment in Kauvery Hospitals underlines [IIFL AM’s] increasing focus on investments in the healthcare businesses that offer comprehensive and affordable care to a broader set of patients," said Nidhi Ghuman, a senior vice president at the alternatives manager.

IIFL AM is part of 360 One, a Bain Capital-backed group that recently rebranded from IIFL Wealth & Asset Management. 360 One has about INR 3.3trn (USD 40.2bn) in assets under management across wealth management, asset management, credit, and corporate finance.

360 expanded its platform last January with the acquisition of Mumbai Angels, one of India’s best-established seed investors. This coincided with IIFL AM acquiring TrueScale Capital, a venture growth firm established in 2021 by Sameer Nath, formerly of Iron Pillar.

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Save this article  
• Send to  

• Topics
• South Asia
• Healthcare
• Expansion
• India
• IIFL Private Equity
• Growth capital