Private equity investments in Europe’s healthcare services sector approached €9bn by August 2024, indicating potential signs of recovery following a significant decline in 2023. The latest figures showed sustained deal activity despite ongoing macroeconomic uncertainties affecting larger transactions.

According to data from Pitchbook, on Monday 19 August, a total of €8.88bn was transacted across 154 deals in the healthcare services sector this year. By the end of June, 125 deals had been completed, worth a combined €7.08bn. This marked an increase compared to the same period in 2023, which saw €5.76bn invested across 129 deals.

The average deal size in the first half of 2024 was approximately €3.5bn, significantly lower than the peaks observed in 2021 and 2022 when healthcare investments surged in the aftermath of the covid pandemic. Pitchbook analyst Andrea Gaini attributed the reduction in deal sizes to persistent macroeconomic challenges that made securing financing for larger transactions more difficult.

The largest private equity deal recorded in European healthcare services this year was Pai Partners’ acquisition of a 67% stake in Vamed, an operator of rehabilitation businesses across Europe, valued at roughly €600m. This transaction underscored investors’ continued interest in strategic assets within the healthcare sector despite prevailing economic headwinds.

Although the global outlook was less optimistic, with healthcare services deal activity declining by an additional 16.5% in the second quarter, Pitchbook’s Gaini anticipated a sector recovery as interest rates were expected to decrease, potentially easing financing conditions and spurring more significant investments in the near future.