EDBI, Philips move to boost digital healthcare investments

EDBI, the corporate investment arm of the Singapore Economic Development Board, and Dutch electronics giant Royal Philips will deepen their joint investment alliance and partner more companies in the digital health sector, in line with Singapore's move to position itself as a leading digital health hub.

On Tuesday, the two partners said CXA Group, an employee benefits and wellness marketplace platform in Asia, is the first to receive funding from the joint alliance.

CXA aims to enable employers to control healthcare costs by applying analytics and provide targeted personalised wellness intervention programmes for employees.

EDBI and Philips had in early 2016 announced their joint investment partnership to drive the creation and commercialisation of connected health solutions targeted at the fast-growing Asian healthcare market.

The partnership aims to help high-potential digital health companies build technological capabilities to innovate, scale up and expand regionally and globally.

Said Choo Heng Tong, executive vice-president of investments at EDBI: "While there is significant value in harnessing data as a digital asset to better personalise health and wellness decisions for individuals, the Asian healthcare sector operates differently from the West where digital health solutions have taken root."

He added that EDBI will continue to identify key game-changers capable of transforming Singapore's healthcare sector with their disruptive technologies.

Caroline Clarke, chief executive officer of Philips Asean Pacific, said the company is now looking to accelerate and get more high-potential companies on board, to deliver better health outcomes in Singapore, support the Committee on the Future Economy's priorities for economic growth and continue on the Philips journey to improve the lives of three billion people a year by 2025.

Through the alliance, CXA will benefit commercially from access to Philips' health technology solutions and business partners across the health continuum, from healthy living and prevention, to diagnosis, treatment and home care.

In particular, it will be able to integrate Philips' leading health monitoring solutions and services to track employees' vital signs and provide them with targeted guidance, aided by clinical algorithms, to help them prevent and manage chronic conditions. The programmes also aim to incentivise healthier behaviours to reduce claims and insurance premiums.