PRINT THIS PAGE 3i's UK nursing home group attracts four bids at around £500m14/10/2004. Source: AltAssets. 
 The strength of private equity interest in the consolidating UK healthcare sector has been further evidenced by the intensity of the competition for 3i's nursing home business Westminster Healthcare. Four groups are understood to have submitted bids of around £500m in advance of Wednesday's deadline.
There were two private equity firms in the final round - Allianz Capital Partners and US buy-out firm Blackstone. They were joined by private healthcare group Bupa and Barchester, the nursing home business controlled by a trio of Irish financiers.
A decision is expected within a week, according to the Financial Times.
Allianz recently bought the Four Seasons healthcare group from Alchemy Partners for around £775m, while Blackstone paid £162m for Southern Cross. The group has subsequently indicated its ambitions to become a major player in the ongoing consolidation process.
Attractive demographics - namely aging populations throughout the developed economies - and the fragmentation of the industry at present have made the residential healthcare sector a target for private equity firms. A similar pattern is being played out across continental Europe. BC Partners, for example, has acquired Swiss and Spanish residential homes within the last 12 months.
3i paid £267m for Westminster in 2002.
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