Permira to buy Australia’s I-Med for $1.1 billion

Bloomberg

Permira has agreed to buy Australia’s I-Med Radiology Network from EQT Partners and other investors, the Swedish buyout firm said in a statement.
Permira, the London-based private equity firm, will pay about $1.1 billion for I-Med, according to people with knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be identified because the details are private. The transaction, Permira’s first in Australia, is expected to close in the first quarter, the statement shows.
EQT invested in I-Med in 2014 alongside Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC Pte and Canada’s Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec, expanding its network to include 204 clinics and more than 3,500 employees. EQT had scrapped an earlier sale process and decided to keep the business, I-Med Chief Executive Officer Steven Rubic said in a memo to staff last month. Representatives for Permira and EQT declined to comment.
Permira funds have been operating in Asia for more than a decade with offices in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Seoul and Shanghai, according to its website. During that period, it has invested more than $3 billion in companies including Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd., Sushiro Global Holdings Ltd. and Tricor Holdings Ltd.
Permira’s equity for the investment likely to come from its latest dedicated global buyout fund, its
7.5 billion-euro Permira VI.