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Baring Private Equity Asia (BPEA) EQT has agreed to acquire a control stake in Indira IVF from TA Associates and the company’s founders. While the financials of the deal were not disclosed, a Reuters report said BPEA EQT will acquire 60 per cent stake for $656.6 million.
Founders, Ajay Murdia, Kshitiz Murdia, and Nitiz Murdia, will retain a minority stake and continue to lead the company.
Indira IVF was founded by Ajay Murdia in 1988 and has since then scaled from a single clinic to a nation-wide network spanning 116 centres across 20 States in India. To date, Indira IVF has successfully supported over 125,000 couples in their journey towards achieving pregnancy.
Underpenetrated market
India is one of the fastest growing markets globally for Assisted Reproductive Technology services and significantly underpenetrated compared to more developed markets. Infertility rates in India are estimated to be around 15 percent and they are expected to rise, driven by lifestyle changes, such as poor diets, stress levels and pollution.
“Today, India completes around 300,000 IVF cycles annually, and over the next decade, the number of cycles done across the country is expected to grow around 15 percent at a compound annual growth rate. This trend is supported by the rising awareness about infertility treatments, growing middle class, declining fertility rates, and increasing marriage age,” said a press release.
Ashish Agrawal, Partner at BPEA EQT, commented, “Fertility services and reproductive health is a large and fast-growing opportunity in India and Indira IVF is a pioneer in this space. We are truly impressed by its scalable and repeatable model with best-in-class medical infrastructure and technology systems that have the ability to help realise the dreams of couples who want to become parents. We see strong potential in further expanding Indira IVF’s presence across India and entering adjacent markets, while continuing to invest in its R&D capabilities and technology, drawing on EQT’s in-house expertise within healthcare and digitalisation.”
BPEA EQT combines the private equity teams from BPEA and EQT Asia.
‘New phase’
Kshitiz Murdia, CEO of Indira IVF, commented, “Partnership with BPEA EQT is the beginning of a new phase of sustainable growth for Indira IVF. Starting from a single clinic in Udaipur to becoming the largest provider of Assisted Reproductive Technology services in India today, Indira IVF’s journey has been a remarkable success story.”
With this transaction, BPEA Private Equity Fund VIII is expected to be 35-40 percent invested (including closed and/or signed investments, announced public offers, if applicable, and less any expected syndication).
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