Blackstone is to acquire a majority stake in CoreTrust, a bulk-buy specialist that controls how many businesses owned by private equity firms secure and pay for goods and services as varied as printers, pallets and postage, according to a report by PE Insights.
The world’s largest alternative asset manager agreed to buy the business, which began life as a supply arm for HCA Healthcare, from the hospital giant’s subsidiary HCA HealthTrust.
Financial terms of the deal, which will see HCA HealthTrust retain a minority stake in CoreTrust, have not been disclosed.
CoreTrust uses the buying power of its customers — mostly companies backed by Blackstone and its investment rivals — to negotiate group discounts with a whole range of service providers covering everything from software subscriptions to the supply ion forklift trucks.
