Aster DM Healthcare plans Indian IPO this year – report

UAE healthcare provider Aster DM is reportedly planning to list in India.

Company chairman and founder Azad Moopen said he was looking to list in India later this year and had set aside $30m to acquire three hospitals in 2016, according to Press Trust of India.

“There is a big opportunity in healthcare in India, as there is a huge demand-supply gap,” Moopen told the PTI. “We are looking to expand our operations substantially.”

Aster’s current Indian footprint consists of three hospitals in Kerala, two in in Maharashtra and two in Telangana. It operates 15 hospitals, 80 clinics and 200 pharmacies across the Middle East, India and the Philippine, according to the publication.

The firm is planning to increase its bed count by 35 per cent through additions in the UAE, Qatar and Bengaluru, the report said.

These include three hospitals expected to open in Abu Dhabi in the next two years, two hospitals in Sharjah expected to open this year and next year and two in Dubai planned for 2016

Last year, Aster acquired an additional 57 per cent stake in Riyadh’s Sanad Hospital for Dhs 900m.