Investcorp invests in Chinese healthcare services start-up

The alternative asset manager led the latest funding round of Linkedcare, which provides services to the dental and medical aesthetics industry

A new regional fund, formed as a JV by Investcorp and Aberdeen Standard Investments, received a capital commitment from Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. Courtesy Investcorp

Investcorp, which counts Mubadala Investment Company as its biggest shareholder, is investing in Linkedcare, a Chinese software and supply chain management services start-up, as it continues to expand its Asian portfolio of investments.

The Bahrain-based alternative asset manager has signed "definitive agreements" to invest in the company that provides services to China’s fast-growing dental and medical aesthetics industry, Investcorp said in a statement on Wednesday.

Linkedcare’s latest growth stage funding round was led by Investcorp with co-investments from Matrix Partners China, Lightspeed China Partners, So-Young International, Jinding Capital and Sheng Ye Capital. Together with a funding round announced a few months ago, Linkedcare has raised more than $100 million during the past six months, Investcorp said.

“As part of our investment strategy, we have been actively growing our presence in Asia over the past years and this is yet another milestone that we have reached as we continue to advance our diversification journey,” Hazem Ben-Gacem, co-chief executive of Investcorp, said.

“China is experiencing strong demand in the dental, beauty and other consumer medical areas, underpinned by secular growth in its economy and demographics, and we look forward to being part of their growth trajectory.”

Established in 2015, Shanghai-based Linkedcare employs more 700 people and serves over 30,000 dental and medical aesthetic clinics in the mid-to-high-end segment of the Chinese market. Its software solutions cover areas including chain management, electronic medical records, inventory, financial reporting and insurance payments.

Last year, Investcorp, which manages $35.4 billion of assets, launched a platform dedicated to investing in Chinese healthcare companies.

Linkedcare marks the company’s fourth investment in China’s healthcare sector in the past 12 months, including KindStar, an independent medical esoteric testing group; Lu DaoPei, a blood oncology hospital group; and WeDoctor, one of China’s largest digital health services platforms, it said.

Investcorp, which has stepped up investments during the pandemic to capitalise on lower asset valuations, is bullish on India, China and some of the other South East Asian markets that form an important "anchor part" of the company's growth strategy, Mr Ben-Gacem told The National earlier this month.

The company has invested $500m in India and a similar amount in China and other South East Asian markets. Mr Ben-Gacem sees further investment in China in the future.

Over the next three months, Investcorp plans to exit four Chinese companies in the healthcare and technology sectors through initial public offerings, he said at the time.

Earlier this month, Investcorp received shareholder approval for a board recommendation to delist from the Bahrain stock market and convert the company into a closed shareholding entity.