3i reaps 3.5x on healthcare exit

3i will sell Nordic healthcare platform Ambea to private equity firm Triton for about €850 million, which will reap the firm a 3.5x return on equity.

3i created Ambea initially by buying Sweden-based Carema in 2005 for an undisclosed amount. The firm then acquired more than two dozen add-ons to the platform, including Mehilainen, based in Finland. The company was renamed Ambea.

The €850 million includes cash and the assumption of debt, though 3i declined to discuss the deal’s financing .

3i invested in the platform from its fourth European fund, which closed on €3 billion in 2004.

Ambea’s net sales grew 15 percent and earnings before interest, taxes and amortisation grew 31 percent per year during 3i’s ownership, the firm said.

Earlier this month, 3i sold its remaining shares in Telecity Group, netting £111 million and bringing its total proceeds to £153 million since Telecity’s public listing in 2007. The total reflects a 5x multiple on its 2005 initial investment, which was the second time 3i backed Telecity.

Triton, a German- and Nordic-focused buyout firm, has offices in the UK, Sweden and Germany. It targets mid-market companies in the business services, industrial and healthcare/consumer sectors.