Monday, June 08, 2015
Alibaba Group Holding founder Jack Ma is making further bets on China’s healthcare sector.
Yunfeng Capital, a private fund co-founded by Ma, and other investors will pump 880 million yuan ($142million) in China Resources Wandong Medical Equipment, a Beijing-based manufacturer of medical imaging devices. Yunfeng has agreed to spend 200 million yuan ($32 million) to subscribe 5.7 million shares for a 2.35% stake through a private placement, according to a June 5 company filing.
Alibaba’s Hong Kong-listed healthcare unit Alijk and Wandong will provide Internet-based medical imaging services, according to the filing. Wandong will also offer analyses of patients’ MRI and CT scans to Yidegu, Alibaba’s online healthcare platform, the filing says.
The deal comes after Wandong’s controlling shareholder, billionaire Wu Guangming’s Jiangsu Yuyue Medical Equipment & Supply Co., in April signed a three-year agreement with Alijk to explore opportunities in smart medical devices and medical resource management.
China’s medical device market has maintained a 20% growth since 2009 and is expected to reach about $48 billion this year, making it the world’ second largest after the U.S. The country’s health ministry has said that it wanted to promote the use of Chinese-made equipment to reduce reliance on foreign companies as well as soaring healthcare costs.
Alibaba recently made a series of moves in healthcare businesses. The company in May rolled out a three-hour delivery service for healthcare goods, after in April injecting an online-transaction platform for web pharmacies on Tmall to its Hong Kong-listed unit in a $2.5 billion deal.
In January, Yunfeng Capital agreed to invest 500 million yuan through a private placement in Guangzhou-based drugmaker Baiyunshan, best known for its Viagra-clone “Golden Spear” and the popular herbal tea brand Wanglaoji.
forbes.com
