PureHealth plans to launch IPO on Abu Dhabi exchange

• Listing likely in December
• Expansion in UK and US
• Sharp fall in Mena IPOs

Healthcare provider PureHealth Holding has announced plans to launch an initial public offering (IPO) on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange to fuel its global expansion efforts.

The listing, likely to be in December, is subject to regulatory approvals, the UAE state-run Wam news agency reported.

Existing shareholders are Alpha Dhabi Holding and International Holding Company Healthcare Holding, wholly owned subsidiaries of International Holding Company and ADQ.

The IPO size and financials were not given.

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The company’s UAE portfolio comprises of 25 hospitals, 100 clinics, multiple diagnostic centres, health insurance, pharmacies, health tech and procurement.

PureHealth is also expanding its presence globally through the recent acquisition of a 100 percent stake in Circle Health Group, an independent operator of hospitals in the UK.

The company in May acquired Ardent Health Services, the fourth-largest private healthcare group in the US.

Farhan Malik, managing director of PureHealth, said that the IPO would enable the company to expand its healthcare technology offering and its global reach.

The UAE and Saudi Arabia top the list regionally in terms of healthcare spending, with the sector forecast to reach $135 billion by 2027, a report by Alpen Capital said.

The figures imply an annualised growth rate of 5.4 percent from $104 billion last year.

“We anticipate that the region will offer an array of investment opportunities on the back of privatisation initiatives and increasing adoption of technology to create alternative healthcare models,” Sameena Ahmad, managing director of Alpen Capital (ME) Ltd, said.

The PureHealth announcement comes as the number of listings on Middle East and North African stock markets slowed during the third quarter. 

There were six IPOs during the period, raising $523 million in total. This is a 14 percent drop in volume and a 66 percent slump in proceeds compared to a year earlier.

There have been 29 IPOs in the first three quarters of this year, according to EY’s Mena IPO Eye Q3 report. Total proceeds stand at $5.8 billion. This is down 6 percent in volume and 61 percent in funds raised year on year. All the listings are in the GCC.