KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 24): IHH Healthcare Bhd’s (KL:IHH) unit has appealed a Tokyo court decision that dismissed its ¥200 billion (about RM5.3 billion) damages claim against Japanese drugmaker Daiichi Sankyo.
Northern TK Venture Pte Ltd (NTK), an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of IHH, filed the appeal with the Tokyo High Court against the Tokyo District Court’s Sept 10, 2026 ruling, according to a filing with Bursa Malaysia.
IHH said NTK believes the case warrants review by a higher court and has therefore exercised its right to appeal.
IHH’s claim is for the losses it says it suffered from the delays in obtaining mandatory tender offer approvals for its 2018 acquisition of a controlling stake in Fortis Healthcare in India, because of a separate dispute between Daiichi Sankyo and the former owners of Fortis, the Singh brothers, which it was not a party to.
IHH maintains that its acquisition of Fortis was carried out through a public and regulated process, with all required corporate, shareholder and regulatory approvals obtained.
The dispute between Daiichi and the Singh brothers dated back to 2008, when they acquired Ranbaxy Laboratories from the Singh brothers. Daiichi later alleged that the brothers had withheld information about regulatory issues at Ranbaxy.
A Singapore arbitration tribunal ordered the Singh brothers in 2016 to pay Daiichi about 25.62 billion Indian rupees in damages, plus interest. Daiichi then sought to enforce the award in India.
The dispute later spilled over into Fortis, which was controlled by the Singh brothers. IHH stepped in as a white knight in 2018, acquiring a controlling stake through NTK and triggering a mandatory open offer. The offer was delayed for years because of legal proceedings.
India’s Securities and Exchange Board eventually approved the offer last year, raising IHH’s stake in Fortis to 31.17% from 31.1%.
Daiichi’s efforts to enforce the arbitration award against the Singh brothers are still ongoing. On Aug 31, India’s Delhi High Court ordered a forensic audit into how the Singh brothers lost their shareholding in Fortis, how control of the company subsequently changed and the roles played by various stakeholders.
The order also covers the transaction through which IHH acquired its controlling stake in Fortis via NTK. This is despite IHH and NTK not being a party to the enforcement proceedings.
IHH in its statement said as one of the largest and longest-standing foreign direct investors in India’s hospital sector, it remains steadfast in its commitment to the country despite the challenges arising from the matter.
The group said India remains a key market and that it plans to raise its stake in Fortis to 51% over the next three to five years, integrate its Fortis and Gleneagles operations further, and expand its hospital capacity to about 10,000 beds by 2031.