European private capital group Metric Capital Partners (MCP) has completed its investments in Áras Sláinte and Global Diagnostics, subsidiaries of the Dublin-based healthcare business Centric Health.
Áras Sláinte (AS) is a provider of primary care in Ireland, offering a range of services to the Irish market through its GP practices, urgent care clinics and occupational health clinics. Locumotion, a subsidiary of AS, places doctors from around the world into GP and hospital positions across Ireland, Australia and the UK.
Global Diagnostics provides managed radiology solutions to public and private healthcare providers to improve quality of service and access for patients, whilst reducing the cost of delivery for providers. Global delivers solutions to the NHS (UK), HSE (Ireland) and Australian public healthcare bodies as well as private hospitals across these three geographies. Services range from simple remote offsite reporting contracts through to fully managed radiology departments.
MCP’s investments, through credit instruments with equity participation in Centric Health, back the management buy-out and refinancing of the businesses.
John Sinik, managing partner of MCP, says: "We are excited to be partnering with very experienced management teams and to provide sustainable capital structures to support the businesses on their growth trajectories. With Áras Sláinte, our focus will be to continue the primary care consolidation strategy in Ireland. Meanwhile Global Diagnostics is benefiting from the increasing utilisation of the independent sector for the delivery of diagnostic imaging in public hospitals – highlighted in the UK through the recent NHS reform packages.
“These transactions are consistent with our investment philosophy, given the downside protection of the non-discretionary element of these businesses coupled with the opportunity to partner with management through our equity participation.”
Dr Maurice Cox, chief executive of Centric Health, says: "We are very pleased to be partnering with Metric Capital Partners. The economic volatility in Europe, and especially Ireland, coupled with the challenges facing the banking system, makes it extremely challenging for smaller business to secure sustainable capital structures. This transaction will allow Áras Sláinte to play a key role in the delivery of a world class Primary Care system in Ireland, accelerating our expansion plans from our current base of 14 centres. Áras Sláinte now looks forward to the opening of Newbridge Primary Care Centre in early 2013 and beyond to a pipeline of further similar projects. MCP provided a flexible capital solution that has also allowed us to complete the acquisition of the remaining minority equity in Global Diagnostics from its founding shareholders and will accelerate our future growth plans in the international radiology sector.”
NCB Corporate Finance advised Centric Health, Áras Sláinte and Global Diagnostics on the process while Dillon Eustace acted as legal adviser.
Brown Rudnick acted as legal adviser to MCP on the transactions.
