Forbes, a global business magazine, included two Pakistani women to its list of the Middle East’s top ten most powerful female CEOs.
Shaista Asif, who was named fourth in Forbes’ ‘The Middle East’s 100 Most Powerful Businesswomen 2024’ list, is the co-founder and group CEO of PureHealth Holding, the UAE’s healthcare network.
Asif co-founded the healthcare firm in 2006 and was appointed CEO in December 2023. Forbes stated that the company’s initial public offering (IPO) raised $986 million in the same month by offering 10% of its issued share capital on the first market of the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX).
The IPO was oversubscribed by 54 times in the professional subscriber tranche and 483 times in the retail tranche. In January 2024, the company acquired Circle Health Group, the UK’s largest independent hospital operator, for $1.2 billion before debt.
The same month, PureHealth paid $600 million for Sheikh Shakbout Medical City, the UAE’s largest healthcare complex, which had revenues of $585.4 million.
