Best Doctors Gets Nippon Life Insurance Co. Infusion

Best Doctors Inc., the tech-enabled healthcare services provider, has accepted a minority investment from Osaka, Japan-based Nippon Life Insurance Co. The transaction, from which terms were not disclosed, closed on April 5. Investment bank Harris Williams acted as exclusive financial advisor to the seller.

PRESS RELEASE:

Harris Williams & Co. announces that Best Doctors, Inc. (Best Doctors) has received a minority investment from Japan-based Nippon Life Insurance Company (Nippon Life). The transaction closed on April 5, 2011. Harris Williams & Co. acted as the exclusive advisor to Best Doctors. The transaction was led by Garin Arevian from the firm’s Technology, Telecom & Digital Media (TTDM) Group, along with Turner Bredrup and Cheairs Porter from the firm’s Healthcare & Life Sciences (HCLS) Group and Matt White and Marshall Croft from the firm’s Richmond office.

“Best Doctors is a leading technology-enabled healthcare services provider that has developed a breakthrough solution to ensure individuals receive the right care by delivering comprehensive, patient-centric, expert advice that guides patients through the complex global healthcare system,” said Garin Arevian, director at Harris Williams & Co.

Best Doctors is the trusted resource that helps people be sure they get the right medical care. Its service dramatically improves the quality of care and reduces costs. Founded in 1989 by two Harvard Medical School professors, the company serves employers, insurers and individuals around the world, covering nearly 25 million people.

Nippon Life, based in Osaka, Japan, is Japan’s largest private life insurer and the sixth largest life insurer in the world. With more than 14 million policies in Japan, Nippon Life offers a wide range of insurance products, including individual and group life and annuity policies through various distribution channels, and mainly uses a face-to-face sales channel for its traditional insurance products.

Harris Williams & Co. (www.harriswilliams.com), a member of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:PNC), is the premier middle market advisor with a two-decade legacy of sell side excellence serving clients worldwide. The firm is focused exclusively on the middle market providing sell side and acquisition advisory, restructuring advisory, board advisory, private placements and capital markets advisory services.

The firm’s TTDM Group focuses on software, IT services, communications and digital media. For more information on Harris Williams & Co.’s efforts in TTDM, contact Jeff Bistrong, Garin Arevian or Derek Swaim at +1 (617) 482-7501 in Boston or Thierry Monjauze in London at +44 207 518 8900.

The firm’s HCLS Group focuses on transactions across the spectrum of healthcare market segments. For more information, contact Turner Bredrup, James Clark or Cheairs Porter in Richmond at +1 (804) 648-0072 or Todd Morris in San Francisco at +1 (415) 288-4260.

Investment banking services are provided by Harris Williams LLC, a registered broker-dealer and member of FINRA and SIPC, and Harris Williams & Co. Ltd, an Appointed Representative of Sturgeon Ventures LLP, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. Harris Williams & Co. is a trade name under which Harris Williams LLC and Harris Williams & Co. Ltd conduct business in the U.S. and Europe, respectively.

For general release inquiries, please contact Kimberly Baker, marketing director, at +1 (804) 648-0072.