Nordic Capital Agrees to Buy U.K. Eye-Surgery Firm SpaMedica

(Bloomberg) -- Private equity firm Nordic Capital has reached a deal to acquire U.K. eye-treatment provider SpaMedica, according to people familiar with the matter.

Nordic Capital signed an agreement this past weekend to buy SpaMedica from U.K. mid-market investment firm CBPE Capital, the people said. The transaction values SpaMedica at around 300 million pounds ($370 million), according to the people, who asked not to be identified as the matter is private.

CBPE Capital accelerated the sale process, choosing a buyer more quickly than expected due to concerns that fallout from the coronavirus outbreak could hamper a deal, one of the people said. Nordic is making the purchase as an add-on acquisition for Ober Scharrer Group, a German ophthalmology outpatient chain that it owns, another person said.

The transaction adds to the $3 billion of private equity deals targeting the U.K. health care industry over the past year, data compiled by Bloomberg show. SpaMedica, based outside the northwestern industrial city of Manchester, is the largest cataract surgery provider to the country’s National Health Service, according to its website. CBPE Capital invested in the business alongside founder Anil Pitalia in 2016.

Nordic Capital has recently been investing in fast-growing sectors such as health care and financial technology. The firm has about has about 13 billion euros of assets under management, according to its website. It’s among bidders for Curium Pharma, a French maker of medical imaging supplies that could fetch at least $3 billion, people familiar with the matter said in January.

Representatives for CBPE Capital and Nordic Capital declined to comment. Representatives for SpaMedica and Ober Scharrer Group couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

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