Amanat spins off new healthcare platform with plans for a potential IPO

The company has healthcare assets in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain

Listed on the Dubai Financial Market since 2014, Amanat’s paid-up capital is nearly Dh2.5 billion. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Dubai-listed Amanat Holdings is consolidating its healthcare assets in the Middle East into a single platform with plans for a potential initial public offering of the new division as part of its growth strategy.

The new company, Amanat Healthcare, will have assets across the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain with an expected capacity of 1,000 beds within three years, the company said in a statement on Monday.

“Amanat Healthcare will be a market leader in long-term, post-acute and specialised care in the region,” Amanat’s chairman Hamad Alshamsi said.

“We will also look at further strategic options for Amanat Healthcare, including inorganic growth opportunities that generate synergistic benefits with our existing world-class portfolio and concurrently explore potential monetisation opportunities for Amanat Healthcare, which may include a regional initial public offering in the near-term.”

Listed on the Dubai Financial Market since 2014, Amanat’s paid-up capital is nearly Dh2.5 billion ($680 million).

Its mandate is to establish, acquire and integrate companies in the healthcare and education sectors with a focus on the Middle East and North Africa region.

Amanat’s healthcare assets include Cambridge Medical and Rehabilitation Centre (CMRC) in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, Sukoon, a provider of long-term and post-acute care services including extended critical care and home care medical services in Jeddah, Al-Malaki Specialist Hospital in Bahrain and the real estate assets of CMRC in Abu Dhabi.

The company reported a 14 per cent jump in its 2022 adjusted net profit on the back of higher revenue.

“The private healthcare market in the region continues to grow strongly, underpinned by favourable demographic and population trends in addition to a supportive government and regulatory environment designed to develop the sector to meet the growing needs of the population,” Amanat’s acting chief executive John Ireland said.

“The formation of Amanat Healthcare will enable Amanat to maximise the opportunity within the GCC through the creation of a new platform which combines quality specialised healthcare with strong financial performance.”

The latest announcement regarding a potential IPO comes as companies from the GCC continue to list their shares on regional stock markets amid an economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.

Middle East IPOs raised more than $23 billion last year from 48 listings, compared with $7.52 billion raised from 20 offerings in 2021. That was the highest share for the Gulf region after 2019, when Saudi Aramco went public in a $29 billion offering, the world’s largest.

Between announced and rumoured IPO plans, the GCC region is expected to float 27 to 39 companies this year, Kamco Invest said in a report earlier this year.