Two private equity firms announced the formation of a $26.6 million fund that will focus exclusively on the aging marketplace and companies within it.
Chicago-based Ziegler and Ohio-based Link-age Ventures announced the close of the Longevity Fund, which aims to address a number of key issues affecting seniors. Among them: coordination of care, chronic disease management, reducing hospitalizations and re-admissions, disease prevention and wellness, aging and government funded programs and public health issues, according to the companies.
The fund is described as one of the first to focus on the 40 million person aging market and companies that serve them amid the shifting implementation of healthcare reform, the two companies said in a release. A 50-50 joint venture has been created and will be known as Ziegler Link-age and will be a Delaware-based LLC.
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It will target equity and investment companies that provide health services, technology and related products for seniors, providing a platform for collaboration and innovation between investors, primarily not-for-profit senior living providers and other healthcare companies.
Officials said the fund is founded on the notion that the increasing aging population in the U.S. presents an attractive investment opportunity given the size and complexity of the growing needs of the senior population, pegged at more than 40 million as of 2012.
The companies said the fund “will generally invest in companies who have established solutions and are seeking additional growth capital.” The collaboration thinks a “concentrated approach” on such companies will allow for added leverage of its existing relationships and domain knowledge to create investment opportunities.
“Providing our not-for-profit senior living and healthcare services clients with unique access to high profile, innovative companies, along with the collaborative idea sharing between the limited partners and healthcare constituents, will benefit the entire community,” Dan Hermann, head of investment banking at Ziegler, said in a statement. “We want to build on not-for-profit providers’ historical approach to shared learning experiences and provide a forum to cultivate new solutions relevant to their organizations.”
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Scott Collins, CEO of Link-Age added, “Not only do we believe the investment thesis of the fund and the demand for new solutions in the longevity economy are compelling, we also believe that providing our investors with a platform to evaluate new products and services, while collaborating with other respected peers from around the country is incredibly valuable.”
Ziegler invests in healthcare, senior living, education and religion sectors, as well as general municipal and structured finance. Link-Age Ventures is the investment arm of Link-Age, a member-owned organization focused on the senior market. The member-owned group serves as a purchasing organization and a research institute.
