Blue Owl (OWL.US) to acquire $1.7 billion in assets of British private hospitals.

Insiders reveal that Blue Owl Capital (OWL.US) has completed a deal to acquire a portfolio of UK private hospitals from the Malaysian Employees Provident Fund (EPF). The insiders state that the alternative asset management company has purchased 12 Spire Healthcare hospitals for approximately 1.3 billion pounds (1.7 billion US dollars). Two other insiders mention that these properties are currently managed by Moor Park Capital Partners, who will continue to be the asset managers after the transaction. One insider mentioned that the hospital asset portfolio investment was completed through Blue Owl's European Net Lease Fund. He also added that the fund has raised approximately 1.3 billion euros to date. Previously, reports indicated that EPF had appointed real estate brokerage firm Knight Frank to sell the asset portfolio last year. Despite a significant slowdown in commercial real estate transactions since the end of the low interest rate era, properties with long-term leases linked to inflation remain an attractive option for investors as they help hedge against inflation risks. This has also fueled a surge in healthcare real estate transactions, with properties leased to government-supported or quasi-governmental institutions attracting investor interest. The acquisition of competitor Assura by Primary Health Properties Plc was one of the largest real estate transactions in the UK last year. This deal sparked a fierce bidding war with KKR at the time. Following the acquisition, Primary Health Properties is currently in talks with GIC Pte Ltd to sell a portion of its stake in a 700 million pound private hospital asset portfolio to reduce leverage levels post-transaction. As the UK National Health Service (NHS) continues to struggle with clearing backlogs of waiting lists during the pandemic, the proportion of UK residents using private healthcare services continues to rise. According to a survey by market research firm YouGov, one in seven people had used private healthcare services for themselves or family members in the 12 months leading up to August 2025.