Ping An Healthcare Management, the medical data collection and analysis subsidiary of China-based insurance provider Ping An Insurance, has raised almost $1bn in funding co-led by telecoms conglomerate SoftBank, Reuters reported on Thursday.
SoftBank co-led the round through its Vision Fund, supplying $400m, alongside fellow lead investor financial services firm SBI Holdings, which provided $450m. The deal valued Ping An Healthcare Management at $8.8bn.
The funding, which has not been officially confirmed yet, comes ahead of an expected initial public offering by Ping An Healthcare Management on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong.
Established in 2016, Ping An Healthcare Management has developed a platform for public medical insurance services and hospitals to manage various aspects of healthcare, such as social health insurance, drug distribution and medical treatment.
The business hopes to sign up 5,000 hospitals across 220 cities to its platform to manage social health insurance and medical records by the end of 2018.
SoftBank’s investment in the unit reportedly follows its commitment to Ping An Good Doctor, a China-based online healthcare platform backed by insurance provider Ping An Insurance that was reported in November 2017 to be seeking a $1bn initial public offering.
SoftBank previously also backed Ping An’s financial unit, Finance One Account, according to the same Reuters report.