US private equity firm KKR has agreed to acquire the India hospital business of Swedish healthcare provider Medicover AB in a deal valued at €1.2 billion (around $1.4 billion, or Rs 13,190 crore), strengthening its push to build a larger hospital platform in the country.
This is KKR’s biggest healthcare deal in India and one of the largest across sectors in the country. The PE firm’s other large transactions in India include its 2020 deal to invest $1.5 billion (Rs 11,367 crore then) in Reliance Industries unit Jio Platforms Ltd and its 2024 acquisition of Healthium Medtech for about $810 million.
In the latest transaction, KKR will acquire 100% of Medicover Hospitals India, the hospital operations arm of the Stockholm-listed healthcare and diagnostic services provider, according to separate statements by the companies on Thursday.
While KKR did not disclose the financial terms, Medicover said the transaction values the business at an enterprise value of €1.2 billion. Medicover owns 66.1% of the unit, while the remaining 33.9% is held by other shareholders.
KKR intends to eventually merge Medicover India and Baby Memorial Hospital, which it acquired in 2024, sometime in the future, creating a larger multi-speciality hospital platform, according to two people familiar with the matter. KKR’s oncology hospital chain Healthcare Global Enterprises (HCG), which the PE firm acquired last year, will continue to operate independently. "HCG will remain separate, but the other two (Baby Memorial and Medicover India) will be merged," one of the persons said, requesting anonymity.
Queries sent to KKR and Medicover India remained unanswered till the time of publishing this article.
At the agreed enterprise value, Medicover India is valued at 5.4x its last 12 months' revenue. The transaction will generate gross cash proceeds of €740 million for Medicover and support its growth strategy in Poland, Germany and Romania.
According to Medicover’s stock exchange filing, Medicover Hospitals India generated €220.5 million in revenue and €26.1 million in EBITDA over the last 12 months ended the second quarter of 2026. The business reported a preliminary EBITDA margin of 11.8% compared to the parent company’s 16.5%.
Kotak Investment Banking advised KKR on the transaction.
Established in 2017, Medicover India is a multi-specialty hospital network with 24 hospitals and around 4,800 beds across south and west India. It offers comprehensive care across more than 80 clinical specialties, supported by more than 1,900 doctors. India contributed 14% of the Swedish firm’s revenue as of the second quarter of 2026.
In December 2024, Medicover had said it was evaluating an initial public offering (IPO) of its India unit as a strategic alternative. However, the company later concluded that a sale transaction was the "superior" alternative for the unit and its shareholders.
“We are pleased to invest in Medicover India and look forward to contributing to its next phase by investing behind its talent, technology, infrastructure and clinical capabilities, while reinforcing strong clinical governance and operational standards," said Akshay Tanna, partner and head of India private equity at KKR.
KKR’s hospital play
KKR has been using Baby Memorial Hospital as a vehicle to acquire more hospitals in India. The firm had acquired a majority stake in Baby Memorial Hospital in 2024. The acquisition followed KKR's sale of its remaining stake in Max Healthcare in 2022 for around Rs 9,400 crore.
The Medicover acquisition adds to a series of buyouts by the firm in India's healthcare space.
In early 2025, KKR struck a deal to acquire a controlling stake in HCG from CVC Capital. As part of the transaction, the firm agreed to acquire a 54% stake in HCG from CVC at Rs 445 per share, valuing the deal at Rs 3,428 crore ($400 million then).
In May this year, Baby Memorial Hospital acquired Hyderabad-based Star Hospitals to boost its regional presence. This was after VCCircle had reported in January that KKR was set to increase its stake in Baby Memorial Hospital, which would subsequently acquire a controlling stake in Star Hospitals.
Last year, Baby Memorial Hospital also acquired Kerala’s Meitra Hospital and Tamil Nadu-based Naruvi Hospitals. In late 2024, it acquired Chazhikattu Hospital in Kerala’s Idukki district.