ICICI Venture invests Rs 35 cr in Metropolis Health Services

Private equity and venture capital management company ICICI Venture has invested Rs 35 crore in Metropolis Health Services, a chain of corporate diagnostic centres with presence in India and abroad. The investment was provided by India Advantage Fund-I, a fund managed by ICICI Venture.

"We believe that the healthcare sector in Asia and specifically India is on the verge of witnessing a growth trajectory. We are confident that together in partnership with Metropolis, we will create a leading healthcare services player in Asia," ICICI Venture managing director and chief executive officer Renuka Ramnath said.

Metropolis would use the investment to fund its expansion plans of extending its geographical reach and entry into related areas of business.

The company is also looking at international acquisitions or joint ventures in countries like South Africa and South East Asia, investment in IT infrastructure development of new technologies and tests.

It would also continue with a spate of domestic acquisitions in cities such as Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Delhi.

Metropolis has NABL and CAP accreditation in India. It has 17 laboratories, 200 franchisees and caters to over 3,000 small labs, nursing homes and hospitals.

The company has over 10,000 consultants across the globe and processes over 5 million samples a year.