German Equity Partners IV (“GEP IV” or the “Fund”), a fund managed by independent German investment company ECM Equity Capital Management GmbH (“ECM”), today announced the sale of its majority stake in Uroviva Group, leading provider of medical services in the field of urology, gynaecology and oncology in Switzerland, to Affidea B.V., a leading pan-European provider of specialist healthcare services including cancer care, advanced diagnostic imaging and community-based polyclinics, backed by Euronext Brussels-listed investment holding company, Groupe Bruxelles Lambert (“GBL”). The parties have agreed not to disclose the terms of the transaction, which already closed.
Development of the organization and strategic expansion of the service offering
Since the entry of GEP IV in 2017, Uroviva strengthened its position as the leading Swiss provider of urology-focused healthcare services and expanded successfully in the adjacent fields of gynaecology and oncology. With the support of ECM, Uroviva has successfully managed the strategic succession of its founding physicians, strengthened and expanded the management team and organisation, and completed more than 10 add-on acquisitions and greenfield openings. Today, with 16 locations across the cantons of Zurich, Lucerne, Zug, Solothurn, and Aargau, and approximately 250 employees – including 55 physicians – Uroviva provides excellent, comprehensive outpatient care as well as inpatient treatment where required.
In addition, as one of the few A2-accredited training centres in urology, recognized by the SIWF/ISFM, Uroviva makes a significant contribution to educating the next generation of urologists and offers an attractive platform for medical professionals from both Switzerland and abroad.
Jan Sobhani, CEO of Uroviva, said: “With this acquisition by Affidea, we are opening a groundbreaking new chapter in the development of Uroviva. We are joining forces with a pan-European experienced partner who shares our values and supports our vision of integrated, patient-centred care. Together, we are creating indeed new perspectives in Switzerland – for our patients, our employees, our partner institutions, and all those who contribute every day to the success of our mission. I would also like to thank our partners at ECM for the successful cooperation over the past years. Their support enabled us to accelerate our growth and expand throughout German-speaking Switzerland.”
Florian Kähler, Managing Partner of ECM, added: “It was a pleasure working in partnership with Jan Sobhani and the whole Uroviva team, collectively supporting the development of Uroviva into the remarkable group we see today. We would like to thank the entire team for the trust they have placed in us and wish them and Uroviva every success for the future alongside their new partner Affidea.”
GEP IV was advised on this transaction by KPMG (M&A, financial, tax and commercial), Milbank, Advestra and Bratschi (legal and structuring). Florian Kähler, Benedikt Müller and Leopold Danner were responsible for the transaction at ECM.
About ECM Equity Capital Management GmbH (“ECM”)
ECM is a trusted growth partner for mid-sized enterprises and entrepreneurs in German-speaking Europe. Since 1995, ECM has raised the private equity funds GEP I-V with aggregate equity commitments of more than €1 billion and currently invests out of its fifth fund GEP V (€325 million). The funds invest primarily in leading mid-market companies with attractive growth potential in the context of ownership successions, partnership transactions and corporate spin-offs.
Further information at: www.ecm-pe.de
About Uroviva
Headquartered in Bülach/ZH, the Uroviva Group is the largest provider of medical services in the field of urology in Switzerland, especially in the Canton of Zurich. Uroviva combines a highly specialized urological clinic with an integrated network of urological and gynaecological practices with related oncological services. With more than 55,000 treatments per year, patients are offered a broad spectrum of medical services, including complex operations. Uroviva provides a unique combination of inpatient and outpatient treatment competence in a market segment that is growing due to demographic factors and at the same time offers consolidation potential due to an aging medical profession.
For more information: www.uroviva.ch