First investment of Gimv Health & Care Fund in French group of private clinics Almaviva Santé

Gimv and the Gimv Health & Care Fund are jointly investing EUR 40 million in Almaviva Santé, a group of seven private clinics in southern France. French investment company UI Gestion is matching Gimv's investment, so that they are jointly acquiring a majority interest. The investment amount mentioned includes current acquisition of Almaviva Santé as well as future commitments by both investors to finance the further growth of the hospital group.

Almaviva (www.almaviva-sante.fr) was established in 2007 by CEO Bruno Marie. Thanks to a highly-driven, well-thought-out acquisition strategy, Almaviva has now grown into a group of seven private clinics with a strong local presence and an excellent reputation in certain surgical fields such as orthopaedics, ophthalmology, cardiology and gastroenterology. The group manages over 750 beds and 65 operating rooms, employing over 1,000 staff and 600 independent physicians. In 2012, Almaviva achieved a turnover of more than EUR 100 million. This makes it the second largest private clinics group in the PACA region (Provence–Alpes–Côte d'Azur).

Almaviva aims to consolidate its leading position in the region through further operational optimisation and expansion of the healthcare offer in existing clinics. New acquisitions are also under consideration.

This is the first deal for the Health & Care Fund, launched by Gimv at the beginning of the year with the Flemish Government as co-sponsor. Health & Care, one of the pillars of the Gimv platform strategy, responds to several major trends in the health sector that represent a huge challenge for our society. The fund gives Gimv the critical mass and fire power to invest in growth companies in the Health & Care Services and Medtech sectors in Belgium, the Netherlands, France and Germany to boost the development of innovative care concepts and the internationalisation of successful business models. The first formal closing of the Fund is foreseen in the first quarter of 2014 with the ambition to raise EUR 200 million.

Bart Diels, managing partner at Health & Care Gimv, on this deal: "The fund aims to help to build on innovative technologies and healthcare concepts capable of responding to the challenges faced by the health sector. The Gimv Health & Care team is proactively looking for initiatives in Flanders and the surrounding regions to fully support businesses playing a pioneering role in the further development of the healthcare sector in their ambitions for growth. In several European countries, private clinics are an important link in the healthcare chain and groups such as Almaviva prove that they play a vital role in the existing hospital system, in which a high-quality, cost-efficient healthcare offer is of crucial importance. Together with Almaviva, we are also giving full backing to the further expansion of outpatient care. Gimv aims to transfer the international experience, know-how and network built up in this way to the various markets in which the fund is active."