Cytecare raises $31 mn from Goldman Sachs, HNIs

Bengaluru-based cancer care provider Cytecare Hospital today said it has raised USD 31 million, including USD 5 million from Wall Street bank Goldman Sachs' private equity arm, by selling an undisclosed stake.

The money will be primarily used for expanding into four or five Indian cities. The company opened its first hospital, a 150-bed facility in Bengaluru in November 2016.

"We have raised USD 31 million, including USD 5 million from Goldman Sachs. At the time of starting the hospital, we had almost half of it and the other half including the money from Goldman Sachs came later," its co-founder and chairman Ferzaan Engineer told PTI.

He said the company has a preference for strategic investors over financial ones and chose Goldman Sachs for the depth of know-how and connections that comes because of its other investments across the world in similar companies.

Goldman Sachs has an intent of investing more, which will be based on financial milestones achieved in the already running facility and the rollout of new facilities in other cities, Engineer said.

The remaining USD 26 million came from a clutch of high networth individuals (HNIs) domestically and abroad who are associated with oncology or medicine sector, he said.

Ankur Sahu, the co-head of private equity investing in Asia for Goldman Sachs, said the country accounts for a fifth of the cancer deaths globally.

"Cytecare, with its experienced leadership and multi-disciplinary team of clinicians, is positioned to build a nation-wide cancer care network," he added.

The high street bank has deployed over USD 3.4 billion in the country since 2006 in private equity investments.

"We are currently in the process of identifying new cities to execute our hub-and-spoke growth strategy," co-founder and chief executive Suresh Ramu said.