ASG Eye Hospitals, India’s leading eye hospital chain, today announced an Rs 1,500 crore investment led by General Atlantic and Kedaara Capital, representing India’s largest fundraise in the eye care industry and largest private equity transaction in the single specialty healthcare industry to date, the company informed in a statement. General Atlantic and Kedaara Capital will join existing operations-focused healthcare investor Foundation Holdings in supporting and fuelling ASG Eye Hospitals’ growth. The transaction is also expected to pave the way for an exit for Investcorp, who invested in the company in 2017. 

“We are delighted and excited to welcome General Atlantic and Kedaara Capital on our mission to enhance the delivery of quality eye care for all and improve quality of life across India. This cornerstone investment is a testament to the strength of our business model and further reinforces ASG Eye Hospitals’ continued success at attracting talented investors. We also express our sincere appreciation to the Investcorp team for their strategic support over the past 5 years,” Dr Arun Singhvi, Chairman and Managing Director and Dr Shilpi Gang, Co-Founder, ASG Hospital Pvt. Ltd. 

“This fundraise is expected to accelerate the realisation of ASG Eye Hospitals’ vision to become one of Asia’s preeminent eye care providers, with plans to establish a network of over 200 hospitals within the next 36 months. With the imminent planned acquisition in South India and our high-quality M&A pipeline of regional players spanning key markets across the country, we are excited to welcome and partner with two highly regarded and forward-thinking investors at this transformational inflection point in the history of ASG Eye Hospitals,” Aakash Sachdev, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Foundation Holdings

According to the Lancet Global Health Commission’s report on global eye health, 62 million people in India are estimated to be visually impaired, with 8 million being afflicted with blindness. Cataract and diabetic retinopathy are the major causes of ocular morbidity and blindness if not treated in time. There is a shortage of ophthalmologists and optometrists in smaller   cities,   towns, and rural areas, India   has   only   an   estimated 25,000 ophthalmologists and only 45,000 optometrists against a required 125,000. Expanding infrastructure, training eye specialists and better utilisation of technological innovation in eye-care will be essential in stemming the rising number of cases. 

ICICI Securities acted as the exclusive financial advisor for the transaction. AZB & Partners as legal counsel to ASG Eye Hospitals. Khaitan & Co. acted as legal counsel to Foundation Holdings and InvestCorp, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co acted as legal counsel to General Atlantic and Veritas Legal acted as legal counsel to Kedaara Capital.