[Funding alert] IIFL India PE fund acquires majority stake in eye care specialty brand Infigo Life Sciences
The private equity fund will look to invest this sum across multiple tranches, enabling Infigo to set up over 20 eye care specialty centres.
![[Funding alert] IIFL India PE fund acquires majority stake in eye care specialty brand Infigo Life Sciences](https://images.yourstory.com/cs/2/bd251c60-2d6a-11e9-aa97-9329348d4c3e/eye-care1561375787068.png?mode=crop&crop=faces&ar=2%3A1&format=auto&w=1920&q=75)
IIFL Asset Management Limited (IIFL-AMC) on Monday announced that it has acquired a majority stake in Infigo Life Sciences through IIFL India Private Equity Fund for Rs 70 crore. The private equity fund will look to invest this sum across multiple tranches, enabling Infigo to set up over 20 eye care specialty centres.
![[Funding alert] Eye care chain Disha Medical Services raises $4 M in Series C from Insitor and ...](https://images.yourstory.com/cs/wordpress/2015/06/yourstory-when-does-a-sector-get-saturated-for-vcs.jpg?fm=png&auto=format&h=100&w=100&crop=entropy&fit=crop)
These centres are predominantly expected to be initially set up in western India, said Infigo in a statement. The company started with six centres – four eye care hospitals and two 3D eye clinics in Mumbai.
At present, Infigo looks to open two eye care hospitals by August in Maharashtra. The company plans to open a total of 15 centres within one year, with 10 centres in Mumbai, and the remaining five spread across Maharashtra.
Commenting on the investment made by IIFL India PE Fund, Prashasta Seth, Senior Managing Partner, IIFL AMC, said,
“India is witnessing an interesting trend with people preferring to visit branded specialty centers for their healthcare needs. In a country where most eye care practices are individually-run and often lack protocols or standards, there is an opportunity to create a pan-India franchise of speciality eye care centres. The current gap in demand and supply and increasing consumer preference for branded chains presents a unique opportunity.”
Infigo Lifesciences Pvt Ltd. is promoted by Dr. Shridhar Thakur, ex COO, Vasan Eyecare and Anil Kamath, ex-MD, Wockhardt Hospitals.
Dr Shridhar Thakur, Founder of Infigo Lifesciences, said,
“We are delighted to welcome IIFL India PE Fund to partner with us in the exciting journey of tapping into the huge potential offered by the Indian eye care sector. There is a huge void for quality eye care service at an affordable cost and IIFL’s support will help us fill this void. All our hospitals will be eyeing at NABH accreditation in immediate future.”
IIFL AMC launched the IIFL India Private Equity Fund in May 2018. The fund seeks to back professional entrepreneurs at an early stage in emerging sectors like healthcare, technology, financial services and consumer goods.
