Carlyle in talks to buy health tech firm Cotiviti for $15 billion - source

(Reuters) -Carlyle Group Inc is in talks to buy private healthcare technology firm Cotiviti Inc from Veritas Capital for up to $15 billion, including debt, a person familiar with the matter said.

The private equity firm is looking to partner with another investment firm to pull off the deal, and is also in talks with direct lenders to arrange $5.5 billion of debt financing, according to the person.

If the arrangement goes through, that would be one of the largest ever direct loans, or non-bank buyout loans arranged in the private credit market, according to Bloomberg News, which first reported on the talks.

Atlanta-based Cotiviti provides payment accuracy and analytics services to health insurers and other healthcare companies.

Cotiviti, which went public in 2016, was acquired by Veritas in 2018 in a take-private deal valued at $4.9 billion, as the PE firm looked to expand its Verscend healthcare IT business.

Carlyle, Veritas and Cotiviti did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comments.

(Reporting by Chibuike Oguh in New York, Leroy Leo and Khushi Mandowara in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri and Shailesh Kuber)