Alantra advised Synova Capitalon the sale of 4 Ways Healthcare Limited to ECI Partners

Sep 2018

Sell-side advisory

Alantra, the global investment banking and asset management firm, has advised the shareholders of 4Ways, a rapidly growing tele-diagnostics company, on its sale to ECI Partners, a leading UK-based growth focused private equity investor. Backed by growth investor Synova since 2015, the transaction has generated a return of 6x invested capital and an IRR of 75% for Synova.

According to Alantra, the requirement for tele-diagnostic services is growing rapidly as hospitals and other healthcare providers are under pressure to deliver clinically excellent services efficiently and on budget. Some 60m+ images are expected to be taken in the UK in 2018, with a growing number of these scans reported remotely due to a lack of in-house provision.

Justin Crowther, a Partner in the UK advisory business of Alantra and a leading adviser to the Healthcare sector, said: “As advisors to the Company since 2015, we have witnessed the rapid growth that 4Ways has achieved during Synova’s ownership period. Providing a unique combination of service, technology and clinical excellence and operating at the intersection of public and private healthcare market, 4Ways is very well placed to build on its leading position in the rapidly expanding UK tele-diagnostic market. We look forward to seeing the business flourish during its next stage of development.”

He added: “As a whole, the healthcare services sector is continuing to experience high levels of M&A and investment activity driven by strong underlying growth which is turn attracting corporate buyers and financial investors. The sale of 4Ways is a great example of this trend.”

Headquartered in Hertfordshire, 4Ways is a leading, rapidly-growing tele-diagnostics company. 4Ways operates a full 24 hours a day, 365 days a year tech-enabled service, providing routine, out-of-hours and specialist clinical reporting on diagnostic images which help hospitals, CCGs and other healthcare providers to deliver high quality and efficient care to their patients. Today, the business reports almost a million scans per annum for more than 100 healthcare sites.