New Delhi, Apr 15 (PTI) The Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Tuesday cleared the proposed merger of Aster DM Healthcare and Quality Care India, and the merged healthcare entity will be named Aster DM Quality Care.
Aster is a healthcare service provider, operating in India through 19 hospitals. It is a part of the Aster Group.
“The proposed transaction includes the proposed merger of Quality Care India Ltd (QCIL) into Aster DM Healthcare Ltd (Aster) by way of a scheme of amalgamation, post which Aster will be renamed as Aster DM Quality Care Ltd,” CCI said in a release.
Prior to the merger, Aster will acquire a 5 per cent stake in QCIL from BCP Asia II TopCo IV Pte Ltd (BCP Asia) and Centella Mauritius Holdings Limited (Centella) in consideration of a primary share issuance by Aster.
The existing shareholders of QCIL — Centella, BCP and certain minority shareholders are proposed to hold certain stakes in the merged entity with Centella holding less than 10 per cent stake, without any control rights, it added.
BCP is owned by funds and affiliates of US-based Blackstone Inc and Centella is owned and controlled by the TPG group.
“CCI approves proposed transaction involving Aster DM Healthcare, BCP Asia, Centella and Quality Care India Ltd,” the regulator said.
QCIL is an unlisted public limited company, owned and controlled by Centella, and BCP. It operates a network of multi-speciality hospitals under the brand name CARE Hospitals, KIMS Health and Evercare.
It has a network of 26 healthcare centres operating over 5,150 beds across 14 cities.
In a separate release, the competition watchdog has also approved the acquisition of shares of TKE Group by Alat Technologies and the formation of a joint venture by Alat Technologies and TKE Group.
“The proposed combination relates to the indirect acquisition by Alat Technologies Company (ATC) of shareholding in Vertical Topco as a result of which ATC will acquire approximately 15 per cent in the TKE Group and the formation of a joint venture by ATC and the TKE Group,” CCI said.
ATC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), the sovereign wealth fund of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). It is active globally and specialises in the manufacturing of semiconductors, advanced industrial, electrification and artificial intelligence infrastructure.
“The proposed KSA JV will be active in the manufacture, supply, installation, and maintenance of vertical and horizontal transportation units (elevators, escalators, etc.) primarily in Saudi Arabia, and potentially in other countries of the MENA region,” it added.
Vertical Topco is the holding company of the TKE Group. The group is active globally and engaged in the installation, modernisation and servicing of elevators, escalators as well as ancillary products and activities.
