The Competition Commission of India has cleared the takeover of two Apollo healthcare companies by Kids Clinic India Ltd (KCIL), the operator of Cloudnine hospitals. The deal involves KCIL acquiring complete ownership of Apollo Fertility Centre Pvt. Ltd and Apollo Specialty Hospitals Pvt. Ltd, along with related share transactions among the parties involved.
What the deal includes
KCIL will take full control of Apollo Fertility Centre, which runs fertility clinics across India offering services including in-vitro fertilisation, embryo freezing and genetic testing. KCIL will also fully acquire Apollo Specialty Hospitals.
As part consideration for this purchase, Apollo Health and Lifestyle Limited (AHLL) will receive shares and convertible debentures representing 9.9% ownership in KCIL on a fully diluted basis. Additionally, Arvon Investments Pte. Ltd will make an equity investment in KCIL.
KCIL currently operates Cloudnine hospitals across nine Indian cities: Bengaluru, Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Ludhiana and Chandigarh. The company focuses on mother and baby care, covering maternity, gynaecology, paediatrics and fertility services.
AHLL, through which Apollo Group holds these operations, also runs primary care clinics and diagnostic services. Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited, a publicly listed company, owns AHLL entirely. Public shareholders hold 71.98% of Apollo Hospitals Enterprise, while the promoter group holds 28.02%.
Apollo Specialty Hospitals operated three business segments until June 2024: Cradle, Fertility and Spectra.
What this means for you
If you use fertility treatment services or specialty hospital care at Apollo facilities, you will now be served by KCIL and its Cloudnine operations following this takeover. The approval clears the way for the transaction to proceed, though existing patients and customers should see continuity in the range of services available. The deal consolidates fertility and specialty hospital operations under one operator, which may influence service delivery, pricing and expansion plans in these healthcare segments going forward.