LetterOne Holdings, the investment firm co-founded by sanctioned Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman, is among bidders shortlisted to acquire a stake in fertility business Fakih IVF, in a deal that could rank among the largest healthcare transactions in the Middle East.
Brookfield Asset Management Ltd., TA Associates and Indian maternity and pediatric hospital chain Cloudnine have also advanced to the next round of bidding, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified because the information is private.
Alantra is advising on the sale of a significant minority or small majority stake that could value Fakih at about $1 billion, the people said.
LetterOne itself is not sanctioned. Fridman, who is sanctioned by the EU, UK and US, stepped down from the board in 2022 .
The process is ongoing and there is no guarantee a deal will be reached, the people said.
Brookfield, LetterOne and Alantra declined to comment. Representatives for Fakih, TA Associates and Cloudnine did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Governments across the Gulf, often through sovereign wealth funds, have invested heavily in healthcare infrastructure for more than two decades, drawing growing interest from international investors as the sector expands on rising incomes and growing population.
Specialty services, particularly assisted reproduction, have become a growing target. Last year, a KKR & Co.-backed firm acquired a stake in ART Fertility Clinics’ Middle East operations.
The strong interest in Fakih, with several other global firms also evaluating the company, highlights investors’ appetite for Middle Eastern assets despite regional tensions.
Dealmaking has remained resilient since the Iran war began in late February, with Blackstone Inc. committing $250 million to an Abu Dhabi-based payments infrastructure platform. A swathe of private equity firms including BlackRock Inc.’s Global Infrastructure Partners and Brookfield are also competing for a stake in a $7.5 billion pipeline network in Kuwait, Bloomberg News reported.
More broadly, sovereign wealth funds across the region continue to deploy billions of dollars across transactions spanning alternative asset managers, private credit and technology platforms.
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Fakih opened its first IVF center in Dubai in 2011 and has since expanded into one of the region’s largest fertility providers, with clinics in Oman, Qatar and Lebanon.