Cross Country Healthcare to Go Private in $437M Knox Lane Deal
Healthcare staffing firm Cross Country Healthcare has agreed to be taken private by Knox Lane, a private equity firm with $3.5 billion in assets under management, in an all-cash deal valued at $437 million. The transaction follows Cross Country’s failed $615 million acquisition by Aya Healthcare, which collapsed in December 2024 after the FTC raised significant competitive concerns about consolidating two of the nation’s largest healthcare staffing firms. Knox Lane’s existing portfolio includes fellow staffing company All Star Healthcare and HCEsquared, a medical education provider serving biopharma. The deal includes a $14.2 million termination fee if either party exits. PE investment in healthcare staffing continues despite heightened horizontal consolidation scrutiny from federal regulators.
PE-backed healthcare operators increasingly depend on contract staffing to flex capacity without permanent overhead — Cross Country’s take-private signals continued PE confidence in staffing platforms as durable healthcare infrastructure, even as horizontal consolidation faces growing regulatory headwinds.
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