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KKR signs agreement to acquire minority stake in BookMyShow
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Business Standard
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KKR signs agreement to acquire minority stake in BookMyShow

Investment firm KKR has entered into a definitive agreement with BookMyShow to purchase a minority stake in the company. These funds will be directed towards supporting the next stage of BookMyShow's growth as the platform expands its business in live events and deepens its offerings across India.

According to a joint statement from both companies, BookMyShow was launched in 2007 and is owned and operated by Bigtree Entertainment Pvt. Ltd., established in 1999. It is one of India's leading entertainment platforms with global operations, positioning itself as a universal hub for satisfying entertainment needs.

The company is present in over 700 cities and towns across the country and collaborates with partners from various industries. The statement notes that KKR's investment reflects the firm's confidence in the Indian entertainment sector and in BookMyShow's ability to drive the next phase of growth, supported by rising discretionary spending, a large and young consumer base, and increasing demand for premium live experiences.

Avendus Capital served as the exclusive financial advisor to BookMyShow, and Trilegal acted as legal counsel. Akshay Tanna, Partner and Head of Private Equity at KKR, stated that BookMyShow is a pioneer in providing quality entertainment services in India.

He expressed satisfaction with BookMyShow's support for its further development in the non-home entertainment sector in India. In his view, BookMyShow will play an important role in realizing India's ambitions to become a global entertainment hub and a prime venue for leading artists from around the world. Tanna added that they intend to combine their deep local knowledge with global investment experience and network to support BookMyShow's transformation.

BookMyShow has been added to KKR's global portfolio of media and entertainment investments, which includes companies such as ByteDance, Chord Music Partners, Epic Games, PlayOnSports, OverDrive, Superstruct, and Simon & Schuster. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals.

Ashish Hemrajani, Founder and CEO of BookMyShow, expressed delight at KKR joining as an investor. He emphasized that KKR's global perspective, deep expertise, and understanding of consumer business will be invaluable in the company's next phase of development. Hemrajani also noted that the timing of the investment is particularly significant given the company's substantial expansion in the live entertainment space and the potential growth of India's entertainment economy.

Furthermore, he extended gratitude to long-time investors, including Network18 (a part of Reliance Industries Limited), Accel Partners, Elevation Capital, Stripes Group, and TPG, for their continuous support.

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KKR acquires Medicover India hospital business for €1.2 billion, expanding presence in India
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business-standard.com

KKR acquires Medicover India hospital business for €1.2 billion, expanding presence in India

Global investment firm KKR has announced the signing of definitive agreements for the full acquisition of Medicover India's hospital business. This deal values the enterprise at €1.2 billion (equivalent to INR 13,187.64 crore at the current exchange rate) and will allow KKR to strengthen its healthcare portfolio by expanding its operations in South and West India.

This purchase is KKR's largest healthcare deal in India since its re-entry into the market in 2024. The acquisition involves KKR purchasing a 100% stake in the company. As a result, Medicover AB, which held 66.1 percent, along with minority partners holding the remaining 33.9 percent, will exit the business.

According to documents filed with Nasdaq, the Swedish healthcare group expects to receive gross cash proceeds of €740 million. Medicover AB stated that these funds will be used to finance expansion in its core European markets, including Poland, Germany, and Romania.

Medicover India, founded in 2017, operates 24 hospitals with approximately 4,800 beds and employs about 11,400 staff in South and West India. The company's headquarters are in Hyderabad, and it operates in over 80 clinical specialties, supported by more than 1,900 doctors, serving millions of patients annually.

Over a 12-month period ending in June 2026, Medicover India generated an annual revenue of €220.5 million (approximately INR 2,400 crore). According to Medicover's report to Nasdaq, its EBITDA was €26.1 million (approximately INR 280 crore).

At an enterprise value of INR 13,187.64 crore, KKR is paying about INR 2.75 crore per bed in Medicover India's existing capacity of approximately 4,800 beds. This transaction values the hospital platform nearly six times its revenue and approximately 46 times its EBITDA for the 12 months ended June 2026.

The valuation accounts not only for Medicover's current capacity but also the potential to acquire an established hospital platform covering Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Karnataka. This immediately provides KKR with a significant multi-specialty presence in South and West India, complementing its presence in Kerala through Baby Memorial Hospital and its oncology division through Healthcare Global Enterprises.

Furthermore, Medicover provides KKR with an operational base in both major metropolitan areas and smaller urban centers, including Hyderabad, Bangalore, Visakhapatnam, Pune, Nashik, and Navi Mumbai. This allows the investor to add hospitals through acquisitions and increase the capacity of existing facilities without the need to build a network from scratch.

Medicover added that it had considered an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in India as an alternative path since last December but ultimately concluded that the sale to KKR was the best option.

Akshay Tanna, Head of Private Equity at KKR in India, stated: 'We are pleased to invest in Medicover India and look forward to contributing to its next phase by investing in its talent, technology, infrastructure, and clinical capabilities.'

He continued that through these investments, the private equity firm will strive to support Medicover India's doctors and employees in improving the quality of care they provide and enhancing patient outcomes in the communities served by the platform across India.

This deal marks KKR's latest move to scale up in Indian healthcare, signaling a return to hospital investments after successfully exiting Max Healthcare in 2022. Nearly two years later, KKR resumed work in the hospital sector by acquiring a 70% stake in Baby Memorial Hospital (BMH) in Kerala for approximately $300 million (about INR 2,856 crore).

Subsequently, the KKR-backed hospital network acquired Meitra Hospital in Kozhikode and a 350-bed multi-specialty hospital in Kerala. The firm also acquired a controlling stake in Healthcare Global Enterprises (HCG), specializing in oncology, from CVC Capital Partners in a deal valued at $400 million (about INR 3,808 crore).

Additionally, KKR acted as a financing guarantor of $600 million for Manipal Education and Medical Group through its private lending platform, after previously being among contenders for a controlling stake in Manipal Hospitals before Temasek emerged as the winner in 2023. KKR's strategy reflects a broader shift among global investment firms towards building large healthcare service platforms in India rather than owning individual hospital assets. Singapore's Temasek followed this approach through Manipal Health Enterprises, becoming its controlling shareholder after acquiring an additional 41% stake in 2023.

Manipal subsequently expanded through acquisitions, including AMRI Hospitals, Medica Synergie, and Sahyadri Hospitals. The company, which debuted on the stock market on Wednesday, now manages over 13,000 beds across 49 hospitals, making it the largest multi-specialty hospital network in India by bed capacity. Temasek also maintains investments in the public hospital operator Global Health, which manages the Medanta network.

The expansion of these platforms reflects growing consolidation in India's fragmented hospital industry. Globally, KKR has invested over $20 billion in the healthcare ecosystem since 2004.

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