Mumbai: KKR is set to acquire the Indian business of Swedish healthcare chain Medicover AB — its third hospital acquisition in as many years — as it looks to capitalise on increased healthcare spending, demand for tertiarycare services, growing insurance penetration and to act as a consolidator.
The transaction includes a sale of 100% stake by existing shareholders, as well as a commitment to deploy fresh capital to fund its growth and repay debt. In all, KKR will be spending Rs 13,000-14,000 crore, around quarter of which (Rs 3,000-4,000 crore) will go into the company as primary capital, said people aware of developments.
A formal announcement of the deal is expected this week.
KKR and Medicover AB did not respond to emails seeking comment. Anil Krishna Gundana, a cardiologist and the local chain’s chairman and managing director, could not be reached for comment.
Medicover Hospitals operates 26 hospitals with more than 6,000 beds across Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka. The chain, operating under Sahrudaya HealthCare Pvt Ltd (SHPL), scaled by acquiring below-the-radar distressed assets and was planning a local initial public offering before the parent decided to cash out, a move that raised several eyebrows.
India has been one of the fastest-growing markets for the Swedish chain, with its high-teens revenue growth fuelled by rapid hospital expansion, outpacing the group’s 16.7% organic rate in 2024. Medicover also has a presence in central and eastern Europe and West Asia.
The Indian network, which includes women and children’s hospitals and cancer institutes, is supported by more than 1,250 doctors and provides multispeciality and superspeciality care across a wide range of clinical disciplines.
The nearly three-decade-old Swedish chain entered India in 2017, the same year it got listed on Nasdaq Stockholm, acquiring a controlling stake in Hyderabad-based Sahrudaya Healthcare, the operator of the MaxCure hospital chain.
Abc Medicover Holdings BV holds about a 66.9% stake in the Indian operations, as per data intelligence firm Tracxn. The rest is owned by a team of founding doctors of Sahrudaya Healthcare led by Gundana and the company’s senior management.
Medicover India’s holding company, SHPL, posted a 13% increase in revenue to $217.25 million in FY25, despite a moderation in occupancy levels. It generated Ebitda of $25.68 million, translating into an Ebitda margin of 11.82%. However, despite the positive operating performance, the company reported a net loss of $23.69 million, according to Tracxn.
The top two specialities, cardiology and neurology, accounted for 34% of inpatient revenue in FY25. The chain plans to further diversify its speciality mix with departments such as oncology to its existing and new hospitals, said a recent ICRA report.
There are continued net losses and an increase in debt levels, on account of the incipient stage of operations of the newer hospitals amid the sizeable capacity expansions in the past four years, which impacted SHPL’s net worth and resulted in modest debt protection metrics, added the report.
According to industry insiders, SHPL is projecting around Rs 400 crore in Ebitda for FY27, which is expected to jump to Rs 600 crore in a year’s time as capacity expansions and new assets will start generating revenue. India has been contributing 10-11% to the parent’s global revenue but drives a big chunk of volumes, or patient footfall.
The international chain invested about Rs 2,000 crore over the last seven years in the Indian network. The business had Rs 2,264.5 crore of debt as of September 30, 2025, mostly external commercial borrowings from the parent.
Medicover expanded significantly in India last year. It opened a new 300-bed hospital in Secunderabad, Telangana, transforming an old site into a modern medical facility. Medicover Hospitals Navi Mumbai launched the city’s first advanced trauma centre, according to the group’s latest annual report. Another hospital opening was planned for this year.
Kotak Mahindra and Rothschild are advising on this transaction.
KKR BIG BETS
Reuters in June was the first to report KKR’s discussions with Sweden’s Medicover for a $1 billion investment to acquire a majority stake in the Indian operations.
Nearly four years after exiting Max Healthcare with a fivefold return, KKR has been aggressively scouting for hospital investments in India. It has been building a healthcare platform in the south through Baby Memorial Hospital, signalling a renewed strategy of acquiring regional hospital chains.
In 2025, KKR took a bet on India’s oncology care sector by acquiring a controlling stake in Healthcare Global Enterprises from founder BS Ajaikumar and other shareholders like CVC Capital Partners. It was also in the race to acquire a controlling stake in India’s second-largest hospital chain, Manipal Hospitals, but eventually lost out to Singapore’s Temasek in 2023. In 2025, its credit arm made a $600 million financing to Manipal Education and Medical Group.
KKR’s renewed push into hospitals reflects growing investor interest in India’s healthcare sector, underpinned by strong revenue expansion across hospitals and diagnostics, sustained capacity additions and continued investor interest, according to a recent EY-Parthenon Healthcare Sector report. Growth was driven by rising patient volumes, improving realisations and a gradual shift towards higher-acuity treatments.
The hospital segment remained the primary growth engine. Revenue and Ebitda growth across major hospital operators was above 15% year-on-year. Hospitals’ operational performance was supported by stable occupancy levels, typically ranging between 60% and 75%, alongside improvements in average revenue per occupied bed. High-acuity specialities such as cardiology and oncology continued to grow strongly, with growth rates exceeding 15% in certain cases, thereby contributing a larger share to total revenue, the report said.
