The Curious Case of the UK Health Sector
August 22, 2023
We all know it’s been a difficult year so far in the private equity markets, with the number of deals being done and total deal volumes down when compared to the first half of 2022.
In a recent press release, Alex Hartley, the Head of Private within Corporate Finance at KPMG UK, commented that “rising inflation and interest rates, together with geopolitical uncertainty” are chief among the issues impacting private equity markets.
If you would like to read the full press release, you can access it HERE.
However, while there has been a general slowdown in private equity deals, the UK health sector has seen particularly high deal volumes. The Financial Times reports that, since 2021, private equity firms have “struck 150 deals for UK healthcare companies”.
The Financial Times article can be found HERE.
The pressure on the NHS, particularly as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, means there is significant and dependable demand which is especially attractive to the private sector.
We are paying particularly close attention to the healthcare sector right now, as we are doing some valuations relating to private equity investment in some very interesting UK businesses. With no political signposting that there will be a reversal in the trend of private sector integration into the NHS, the UK healthcare sector will likely continue to see significant private equity investment. It would not surprise me if, by the time we have finished, we have to enhance the valuations for this significant opportunity.
