Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer advises Axight on the acquisition of Estia Health as part of a Stonepeak-led consortium

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer (HSF Kramer) has advised Axight – an Abu Dhabi-based private equity investment manager focused on the Asia-Pacific region – on its acquisition of a minority stake in Estia Health from Bain Capital as part of a Stonepeak-led consortium.

Axight was established by Lunate, a global investment firm with over US$115 billion in assets under management. The transaction, which is subject to customary regulatory approvals, marks Axight’s second investment in the Australian market and represents a significant investment in one of Australia’s largest residential aged care providers.

Headquartered in Sydney, Estia Health is the second largest residential aged care operator in Australia, operating more than 90 homes across New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, and Victoria, and caring for approximately 9,000 residents.

The HSF Kramer Corporate team was led by partners Tom Hoare and Raji Azzam and senior associate Simone Gould. They were supported by solicitors James Webb and Zoe Feldman.

The HSF Kramer Tax team was led by partners James Pettigrew and Jay Prasad. They were supported by solicitor Coco Frohlich.

Partner Tom Hoare said, “Australia's private capital market continues to attract significant international investment. We are pleased to have supported Axight on their second Australian investment and to have played a role in their future partnership with Stonepeak.”

This transaction reflects the depth and capability of our private equity practice. Other recent examples of HSF Kramer’s market-leading work in Australian private equity include advising:

• Advent Partners on:
  • the sale of Medtech Global to Banyan Software
  • its acquisition of Efex
• BGH Capital on:
  • the sale of CyberCX to Accenture
  • the sale of Laurent Bakery Group to Groupe Le Duff
• BlackRock on its acquisition of StoreLocal
• Blackstone and its portfolio company, Rover Group, Inc on its acquisition of Mad Paws
• Carlyle on its acquisition of Waste Services Group
• Colinton Capital Partners on:
  • its acquisition of LPA Energy
  • its acquisition of Doors Plus
• EQT and its portfolio company, Compass Education, on:
  • its acquisition of Inklass
  • its acquisition of Clipboard
• Mercury Capital and its portfolio company, Fyfe, on:
  • its acquisition of Ecology and Heritage Partners
  • its acquisition of Middleton Group
• Milford Private Equity on its investment in Bridgit
• Odyssey Private Equity on the sale of Sushi Sushi to Genki Global Dining Concepts Corporation
• One Investment Management on its acquisition of Insignia Financial
• Pacific Equity Partners on:
  • its acquisition of Serenitas
  • its acquisition of IPAH Client Solutions via its portfolio company, Intellihub
• Tasman Capital on its acquisition of Acis
• The Growth Fund on:
  • the sale of AFS Logistics to FMH, a PEP portfolio company
  • the sale of Black Mount Spring Water to Tasman Capital
• The Riverside Company on:
  • its acquisition of Dingo Software
  • its acquisition of Virtual IT Group