SA-based medical technology company Vertice MedTech, owned by JSE-listed Ethos Capital, is doing well as an unlisted entity.
Vertice provides medical device solutions for African healthcare providers and patients to achieve the best possible healthcare.
If Vertice were a JSE-listed stock, it would be a secret gem. Hidden gems are fundamentally strong companies that fly under the radar and tend to be undervalued due to the lack of market interest. However, the upside potential is significant once these stocks appear on the radar of major investors.
Founded in 2018, Vertice is one such unlisted company. It provides much-needed medical device solutions that help save lives.
A medical device can be an instrument, implant, or other device used to diagnose, treat or prevent disease or other medical conditions. Pacemakers, artificial heart valves and ultrasound machines are examples of medical devices.
Vertice was created through a buy-and-build strategy with nine successful bolt-on acquisitions since Ethos’ investment in 2018.
Considering Vertice has cultivated a niche market over the years, it makes sense to list the company on the A2X or the JSE. Listing on the stock exchange would allow Vertice to raise sufficient capital for expansion and research & development (R&D). Such a move would most likely raise its value.
Revolutionising healthcare
Without much fanfare, Vertice is quietly revolutionising healthcare by deciphering the patient journey using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML).
AI and ML are at the heart of Vertice’s software and diagnostics division, which focuses on clinical management, healthcare systems, real-time analytics, connected health technology and digital health solutions.
An initial public offering (IPO) could allow the Ethos-owned company to raise capital to transform the healthcare sector on a large scale. It would also enable Vertice to deliver digital interventions that transform conventional care pathways into a smart healthcare system.
Consulting firm E&Y classifies the Smart Health System as an intelligent healthcare ecosystem that will provide patients with smarter insights and personalised healthcare experiences any time, anywhere.
“The clinicians of the future may indeed become medical engineers; they will be trained in artificial intelligence, big data, robotics and other emerging technologies and disciplines,” E&Y said.
Vertice’s IPO may allow South Africans to participate in one of the fastest-growing companies that could transform healthcare.
“They will remotely manage multiple patients at a distance with the help of AI, augmented reality [AR], nanobots and other powerful tools [that] are already growing rapidly today in technological maturity and commercial value.”
E&Y says such a major shift in the way we think about medicine sounds like science fiction. Yet we are already seeing the beginnings of a major shift in the way healthcare works.
For example, on Tuesday Mineworkers Investment Company (MIC) placed a R25m bet on Quro Medical, a digital health company that is changing the healthcare landscape. The digital health company makes premium healthcare solutions accessible and affordable to everyone.
Quro Medical’s innovative Hospital at Home programme provides patients with quality healthcare from the comfort of their own homes while reducing the risk of infection and costs compared to traditional hospital stays.
Two months ago, Mediclinic Southern Africa made a bet on precision medicine by acquiring an 80% stake in Artisan Biomed. This move enabled the launch of Mediclinic Precise, a bundle of DNA-based diagnostic and clinical interpretation services that offer a new approach to healthcare based on a person’s genetic profile to personalise their wellness, disease prevention and health management plan.
As a result, Mediclinic last week launched safe, non-invasive prenatal testing for expectant parents.
‘Simplicity, convenience and speed’
Deon Myburgh, ICT infrastructure manager at Mediclinic Southern Africa, believes healthcare providers face the challenge of integrating new technologies such as wearables, mHealth, digital health solutions and telemedicine with complicated legacy systems.
“The modern consumer has expectations that are shaped by the key digital service providers in their lives,” he said. “They want simplicity, convenience and speed.
“These demands present unique challenges in the health sector, which is governed by regulations, and our tech teams are driving industrywide changes that are paving a different and better future for healthcare.”
As a result, Ethos Capital must act quickly to strengthen Vertice’s balance sheet, so it can invest more capital in developing new and better medical device solutions.
The clinicians of the future may indeed become medical engineers; they will be trained in artificial intelligence, big data, robotics and other emerging technologies and disciplines.
— E&Y
The company is already a pioneer and available in 21 African countries (such as Angola, Ghana, Nigeria and Kenya) and on Ascension Island.
Since 2018, Ethos has invested R128m into the platform. It recently announced that Vertice has significant potential to grow both in terms of market share, market value and product categories within SA and Sub-Saharan Africa.
All indications are that Vertice has the potential to provide the rest of Africa with medical technology solutions that create sustainable healthcare.
According to the Market Data Forecast, the global medical device industry was valued at $465bn in 2022 and is expected to be worth $625bn in 2028. That’s a huge market in which Vertice, a little-known company in SA, has a big role to play.
Vertice’s IPO may allow South Africans to participate in one of the fastest-growing companies that could transform healthcare.
Vertice believes that through digital transformation, it can harness the power of AI, big data, robust analytics tools and blockchain to break barriers to value-based care and revolutionise service delivery to create sustainable healthcare experiences in Africa.
• Lourie is the founder and editor of TechFinancials.
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