Editor's Insight Health Gulf fertility: falling short of replacement rates Your starter for 10. The demographics of Tehran most closely resemble those of which city? a) Damascus b) Riyadh or c) Zurich. The answer of course, as any fule kno, is c). True, Zurich lacks a prison with the reputation and commodiousness of Evi... Register now: It’s easy and free This content is available for […] March 6, 2025
Health Gulf healthcare battling staff shortages as demand rises Recruitment is the single biggest challenge facing the Gulf’s healthcare sector, according to industry experts. By 2029, the region will need around 12,300 additional hospital beds to serve a population that is not only growing in number but also aging and living longer, according to private equity group Alpen Capital. That is equivalent to growth […] February 27, 2025
Health Burjeel wins Abu Dhabi healthcare contract The UAE hospital operator Burjeel Holdings has won a contract from Abu Dhabi worth AED225 million ($61 million) to manage and develop healthcare facilities in the emirate and in Africa. Burjeel will operate five clinics in the cities of Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, and develop a new one in Al Wathba, about 20km south […] February 26, 2025
Health BR Shetty ordered to pay $106m to Indian bank BR Shetty, the founder of UAE company NMC Health, has been ordered by a Dubai court to pay $106 million to India’s Icici Bank over personal guarantees tied to the embattled hospital group. This marks a second court ruling made public so far this month. Earlier this month, Shetty was ordered to pay $33 million […] February 20, 2025
Health Waha Capital to expand UAE health business Abu Dhabi’s Waha Capital, a listed company with $3.2 billion of assets under management, plans to expand its healthcare business in the UAE, and could make acquisitions to do so. The company aims to tap demand from the emirates’ expanding population and visitors from India, its chief financial officer said. Waha is part-owned by Abu […] February 19, 2025
Health NMC confirms no buyers so far have matched valuation The UAE’s troubled hospital operator NMC Healthcare confirmed that it has no buyers yet for the company, with differences around valuation cited as one of the reasons. Earlier this week, two people familiar with discussions around a possible sale said that Abu Dhabi-based PureHealth Holding, the UAE’s biggest healthcare group by number of facilities, had […] February 13, 2025
Health NMC founder BR Shetty ordered to pay $33m to Indian bank BR Shetty, the founder of the UAE healthcare company NMC Health, which collapsed in 2020 with billions of dollars in hidden debt, has been ordered by a Dubai court to pay more than $33 million to an Indian bank. In a ruling made public only last month, the Dubai International Financial Centre Courts in November […] February 10, 2025
Analysis Health Tech specialists tap into Gulf’s market of the sleep deprived People in the Gulf are among the worst sleepers in the world, research has found – and that makes the region a rousing proposition for sleep-aid businesses such as the US pair Whoop and Eight Sleep. A survey of 2,727 people across the GCC, published last month, found that only half manage to sleep for […] February 9, 2025
Analysis Health Saudi privatisation push fortifies healthcare companies 11 listed companies analysed Profits have risen for 10 of them Government policy drives growth The revenues of listed Saudi healthcare companies should rise more quickly than the broader stock market thanks to government efforts to incr... January 29, 2025
Health US fund plans $200m factory in Saudi Arabia US-based fund Akkad Holdings is to invest $200 million to build an intravenous fluid factory in Saudi Arabia. The facility will be based in King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) in Mecca province. “We’re going to break ground hopefully in the next six months,” Dr Steven Shaya, managing director of the fund, told AGBI at the […] January 28, 2025
Health Twaereat Medical to trade on Saudi Arabia’s Nomu Twaereat Medical Care Company will begin trading on the Nomu-Parallel Market from Wednesday, the Saudi Exchange has announced. Twaeraat, which operates more than 100 clinics around Saudi Arabia, will seek an external liquidity provider following its direct listing on the bourse. The indicative price per share is SAR12 ($3.20), according to the registration document. Twaeraat […] January 28, 2025
Health Pure Health buys stake in Greece’s Hellenic Healthcare Abu Dhabi-listed Pure Health has agreed to purchase a 60 percent stake in Hellenic Healthcare, an Athens-based private healthcare services provider. The transaction values Hellenic Healthcare at €2.2 billion ($2.31 billion). The sellers – CVC Capital Partners VI and the founder of Hellenic Healthcare – will retain 35 percent and 5 percent stakes in the […] January 28, 2025
Health SMC Healthcare expects swift profitability from new hospitals SMC Healthcare is building three new hospitals in Riyadh that should break even within three to four years, the Saudi company’s chief executive, Bassam Chahine, has told AGBI. The three hospitals will more than double SMC’s bed count to about 1,200 as it seeks to address healthcare supply shortfalls in the kingdom. Saudi Arabia requires […] January 23, 2025
Health Health insurance shake-up for care in Northern Emirates Mandatory health insurance in the poorer Northern Emirates of the UAE is likely to lead to an expansion of healthcare facilities and increased M&A activity, experts have said. In March last year the UAE announced a plan to introduce mandatory health insurance for all workers in the Northern Emirates – Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, […] January 16, 2025
Analysis Health Saudi Arabia’s biotech push fuels specialised consulting demand High demand for expert consulting Lack of industry-specific knowledge Limited local talent pools Saudi Arabia’s push to become a regional biotechnology hub is fuelling demand for specialised consulting services, as it navigates the chal... January 16, 2025
Health UAE’s PureHealth expands US healthcare presence Abu Dhabi-listed PureHealth Holding has expanded its presence in the US healthcare sector. New York Stock Exchange-listed Ardent Health, a subsidiary of PureHealth, acquired 18 urgent care clinics across New Mexico and Oklahoma in the US from NextCare Urgent Care. In May 2023, PureHealth purchased a minority stake in Ardent Health for $500 million. The […] January 7, 2025
Analysis Health Healthcare providers from Americas target GCC tie-ups With the rise of chronic diseases and other complex medical needs, co-operation is growing between medical institutions in Gulf states and their counterparts in the US and beyond. Mass General Brigham Hospitals Network and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, both based in Boston, Massachusetts, and the Mayo Clinic of Rochester, Minnesota, are among the household names […] January 6, 2025
Health UAE’s Burjeel buys Saudi physiotherapy centre Burjeel Holdings has bolstered its presence in Saudi Arabia by acquiring a physiotherapy centre in Makkah. The Specialist Physiotherapy Center was purchased for SAR6.5 million ($1.7 million) by Burjeel KSA, a subsidiary, broadening the Abu Dhabi-listed hospital operator’s footprint in the kingdom. The centre provides hotel physiotherapy solutions designed to support the needs of Umrah and […] December 31, 2024
People & Lifestyle Almoosa Health IPO’s retail tranche orders hit $372m The retail tranche of Almoosa Health Company’s initial public offering (IPO) on the Saudi stock exchange was 408.7 percent oversubscribed, with the order book reaching SAR1.4 billion ($372.8 million). It ran two days from December 23 and comprised 2.66 million shares, representing 20 percent of the IPO, at SAR127 per share. Individual investors will receive […] December 30, 2024
Health Mubadala expands UAE healthcare logistics reach Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Company has acquired an 80 percent stake in Global Medical Supply Chain and Al Ittihad Drug Store from GlobalOne Healthcare Holding, the healthcare division of UAE-based Yas Holding. GlobalOne Healthcare Holding will retain a 20 percent stake in both companies. The acquisition expands Mubadala’s footprint in healthcare logistics and pharmaceutical distribution. […] December 25, 2024
Health Thriving women’s fitness market offers ‘significant potential’ Exercise rates among women in the Middle East are higher than the global average, creating opportunities for companies to tap into this underdeveloped market segment. Participation in intense physical activities among women in the Middle East has grown from 20 percent of the population in 2019 to 31 percent in 2024. That’s a much larger […] December 19, 2024
Markets Almoosa Health’s Saudi IPO order book hits $46bn The institutional book-building process for Almoosa Health Company’s upcoming initial public offering (IPO) has reached SAR173 billion ($46 billion) and was oversubscribed 103 times. The company set the final offering price at SAR127 per share, raising SAR1.69 billion on the Saudi stock market listing. The expected market capitalisation will be SAR5.63 billion, making it the […] December 17, 2024
