Waterland merges Median and RHM

Waterland acquired Median from Advent International in October this year for around €1bn including debt. The firm made the investment through its fifth fund, Waterland Private Equity Fund V, which closed on €1.1bn in July 2011.

The acquisition of Median was completed on 15 December, allowing Waterland to begin the process of legally merging the company with its competitor RHM, which the GP acquired in May 2011.

The process has already begun with the establishment of a common management team for both companies. RHM CEO André Schmidt and CFO Roland Seebauer have joined the board of Median, while Philipp Cremer will stay in his current role of COO for Median. Klaus-Dieter Stocker will remain director for RHM.

Median CFO Daniel Koch will remain in his position for a transitional period before stepping down. Hartmut Hain is also stepping down as CEO of Median at the end of the year.

The legal merger of the two companies will take place next year. The newly formed group will operate under a new name.

Just days after Waterland acquired Median in October, the company reaped €705m via the sale and lease-back of 40 Germany-based rehabilitation clinics.

Previous investments
Waterland acquired Median in October this year from Advent International, with the deal giving the company an enterprise value of around €1bn. The firm invested via its fifth fund.

Advent, alongside real estate private equity investor Marcol, had acquired Median in an all-equity deal in August 2009. The two firms acquired the company from founders Dr Erich Marx and Axel Steinwarz, who exited as part of the deal.

Waterland acquired RHM in May 2011. According to unquote" data, the deal included a €135m debt package.

In January last year, Waterland financed the bolt-on of the Heinrich Mann clinic by RHM as part of the company's buy-and-build strategy.

Company
The newly formed company will operate 72 clinics with 12,000 beds and 9,500 employees. Its headquarters will be in Berlin – Median's current headquarters – with RHM's Deidesheim headquarters remaining as an additional base.

Berlin-based Median currently operates 45 clinics with 9,500 beds and 7,500 employees. It specialises in neurologic, cardiologic, psychosomatic and orthopaedic rehabilitation. The company treats 127,000 patients per year.

Deidesheim-headquartered RHM operates 26 hospitals and nursing homes with 2,900 treatment facilities and employs 1,900 staff. The company specialises in inpatient rehabilitation, nursing and acute care services. It treats 50,000 patients per year.

People
Carsten Rahlfs is a principal at Waterland and head of the firm's Düsseldorf office.

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