13/9/2018 – International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector investment arm of the World Bank Group, is investing in Fullerton Healthcare Corporation to improve the provision of affordable healthcare in the Philippines.
The IFC investment was made through the healthcare wholly-owned subsidiaries – Fullerton Health Philippines Holdings Corporation and Fullerton Health Philippines Pte Ltd – in the form of an S$55 million (about US$40 million) long-term loan facility.
According to Fullerton Health, the loan will be used to help improve the provision of affordable, quality health care in the country and enhance efficiency in the health maintenance organization market through increased integration between the financing and provision of healthcare.
At the same time, this follows the completion announcement in May 2018 regarding Fullerton Health’s entry into the Filipino market through the purchase of a 60 percent stake in the Intellicare Group.
“Garnering the support of IFC as a long-term financing partner is a strong testament of what we have achieved thus far in the healthcare sector across Asia Pacific,” said Tam Chee Chong, the Chief Financial Officer of Fullerton Health.
“It validates our strategic partnership with the Intellicare Group to deliver a holistic approach managed healthcare in the Philippines,” Tam added.
Intellicare group consists of three firms: health maintenance organization (HMO) Asalus Corp, third party administration services provider Avega Managed Care, Inc., and Aventus Medical, Inc. which operates a network of outpatient and mobile clinics.
Fullerton Health, on the other hand, is founded in 2011 as a vertically-integrated healthcare platform. It operates in the Asia Pacific region and serves over 500 healthcare facilities and a large global network of healthcare providers across eight markets in Asia.
Now with the support of IFC’s expanding network, Fullerton Health will further increase training opportunities for health professionals in the Philippines via Intellicare, improving the skill level in this sector and subsequently create jobs.
IFC’s support will also extend to the sharing of best practices within different areas of operations, including facilitating introductions within IFC’s network of healthcare clients.
Vivek Pathak, the IFC director for East Asia and the Pacific, commented on the deal saying that Fullerton Health’s projects will immensely benefit the Philippines, where there is a gap in health insurance coverage.
“High-quality affordable health care is critical to the long-term sustainable development of the Philippines,” Pathak said. “The growth of Intellicare and other companies in this segment will help reduce low and middle-income households’ reliance on out-of-pocket payments to fund health care expenses.”
Since 1962, IFC has invested more than US$3 billion to support over 100 private sector companies in the Philippines. As of December 2017, the investment firm has a committed portfolio of US$ 763.9 million
On a related note, Fullerton Health is aiming for an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in the United States after shelving plans for one in Singapore.
