A London-based private equity firm is acquiring one of the country’s leading teleradiology providers in a deal valued at $336 million (USD), the two announced on Monday.
Through a subsidiary, IK Investment Partners is buying the Medica provider group in an all-cash transaction. First founded in 2004, the publicly traded firm employs more than 400 providers working across 100 hospitals and completing 1.5 million imaging reports annually.
This marks the fifth public London company in the space of a week to announce progress toward a sale to private equity, the Evening Standard reported.
“We are pleased that the board of Medica has unanimously agreed to recommend the acquisition of Medica by [wholly owned subsidiary] Bidco,” Pete Wilson, head of IK Partners’ U.K. mid-cap strategy, said in an announcement. “We believe that under Bidco’s ownership, Medica will be able to invest further in its people, technology and new capabilities, which will allow it to better serve its customers, healthcare professionals and, ultimately, continue to help improve patient outcomes,” he added later.
Medica is based in the southeast coastal town of Hastings and has been traded on the London Stock Exchange since 2017. Its operations span the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Australia, according to the announcement. IK Partners, meanwhile, has invested in 23 healthcare companies throughout Europe, deploying more than $2.3 billion in capital.
“The board of Medica believes that IK Partners is a strong and credible partner for the business and is well-positioned to support its next phase of development, including accelerating investment in the company, which will benefit our customers and their patients going forward,” Medica Chairman Roy Davis said in the announcement.
Medica also has a U.S. subsidiary called RadMD, which has provided imaging services to pharmaceutical firms, biotech clients, and other contracted research organizations, spanning 500-plus clinical trials.
Those involved said they hope to close the deal by the end of 2023’s second quarter.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.