Private equity firm TA Associates has backed Retriever Medical Dental Payments Inc., a payments technology provider for large healthcare providers, with a minority investment. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Retriever is a payment processing service provider focused solely on the healthcare industry. The target, using its Bridge software, services more than 15,000 physician practices, dental offices, veterinary clinics and hospitals across the U.S. The Bridge software allows providers to integrate payment processing workflow and data with their existing practice management software or enterprise software planning (ERP) systems. “The transition from cash and check to electronic forms of payment continues to accelerate and offers significant advantages to patients and providers,” states Roger Kafker, a TA Associates managing director. “As healthcare organizations are recognizing the importance of collecting payments effortlessly, integrating their patient payment methods seamlessly into practice management systems becomes essential to eliminating duplicate administrative efforts.” Founded in 1968, TA Associates is a Boston private equity firm that targets the technology, financial services, business services, healthcare, and consumer sectors. The current deal for Retriever isn’t the first deal of its kind for the PE firm. In May 2015, TA Associates acquired a majority stake in Procare Software, a payments provider for childcare management companies. The firm has previously invested in other payment processors, including: BluePay, BillDesk, YeePay and SmartStream Technologies. The search for improvements and automation through technology has been a driving force for M&A across a variety of sectors, specifically healthcare. Medical technology is one of the many subsectors seeing the influence. Recent acquisitions include: Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc.’s purchase of physical therapy tech manufacturer RespondWell and its completed deal for CD Diagnostics; McKesson Corp.’s (NYSE: MCK) purchase of CoverMyMeds, a technology-enabled company known to automate prescription drug approvals; Auris Surgical Robotics Inc.’s purchase of medical robot manufacturer Hansen Medical Inc.; MedData Inc. acquisition of hospital software developer Cardon Outreach; and Thoma Bravo’s deal for medical IT security firm Imprivata (NYSE: IMPR).
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