Singapore’s Temasek buys majority stake in Manipal Hospitals

06 Apr 2023

Temasek Holdings, the investment arm of the Singapore government, has acquired a majority stake in Bengaluru-based Manipal Health Enterprises for over $2 billion (Rs16,375 crore), in one of the largest deals in the Indian healthcare sector in recent times. Temasek acquired an additional 41 per cent stake in Manipal Health through Sheares Healthcare India, taking its stake in India’s second-largest hospital chain to 59 per cent.

The acquisition was made from promoter Ranjan Pai and other investors such as TPG Capital Management and National Infrastructure Investment Fund (NIIF), an investment platform anchored by the Indian government, industry officials familiar with the matter told the media.

The transaction values Manipal Health at around Rs40,000 crore.

Following the transaction, the stakes held by promoter Ranjan Pai and his family will fall from 52 per cent to 30 per cent. TPG Capital has sold an 11 per cent stake from its total 22 per cent stake in the hospital chain. NIIF has exited by selling its 8 per cent stake.

Manipal Health runs India's second-biggest hospital chain after the Apollo Group. Manipal has 29 hospitals in 16 cities of the country.

Founded by T M A Pai in 1953, Manipal Hospitals is the second largest healthcare provider in India, with a network of 28 hospitals. Manipal Health Enterprises, commonly known as Manipal Hospitals, traces its their origins to the Kasturba Medical College and is part of the Manipal Education and Medical Group.

Manipal Health had acquired Columbia Asia Hospitals for over Rs2,000 crore in 2020, before acquiring Vikram Hospitals in the following year. A deal to acquire Kolkata-based Advanced Medical Research Institute (AMRI) is also reportedly in the works.

Ranjan Pai had massively expanded Manipal Health, which was started by his grandfather TMA Pai, who, besides the Kasturba Medical College set up in 1953, established a string of educational institutions in Manipal, in Udupi district of Karnataka. The Manipal group has also started a campus in Bengaluru in 2022, besides campuses in Jaipur and Sikkim.

Apart from Manipal Hospitals, Sheares India also holds a majority stake in Medica Synergie, a Kolkata-based hospital chain. Temasek also owns about 16 per cent of Global Health, the operator of Medanta Hospital, which is listed on the domestic exchange.