The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has announced that it's seeking views on four completed acquisitions by Welltower Inc., covering over 600 operational care homes across the UK before opening a formal merger investigation. These transactions involve homes managed by Barchester, HC-One, Aria Care, and Danforth Care, representing a significant consolidation within the UK care sector.
The CMA case page states that it has received sufficient information from the parties to commence its ‘pre-notification’ phase. As part of its information gathering process, on 19 January 2026, it issued an invitation to comment, seeking views from interested parties ahead of formally opening a Phase 1 merger investigation. The window for submissions remains open until 2 February 2026 for any parties wishing to provide input.
See the CMA’s announcement here.
What will the CMA be looking at?
These transactions are part of the continued expansion of Welltower’s UK footprint following its 2024 acquisition of Care UK. The latest transactions include the real estate portfolios of Barchester Healthcare and HC One, and the operating and property companies of Aria Care and Danforth Care Homes. Welltower has placed the Aria and Danforth homes under Care UK’s management, meaning that Care UK has become the UK’s second largest care provider.
These transactions are set against a backdrop of wider consolidation trends across the healthcare landscape.
Areas including primary care, dentistry, and health related real estate have all seen involvement from larger groups, investors, and integrated care providers. While consolidation can contribute to greater resilience and improved investment, it may also attract regulatory attention to ensure that market structures continue to support access, choice and quality of care.
As well as scrutiny of specific transactions as in this case, the CMA also has the power to examine how markets are working as a whole, as they look set to do in respect of private provision in the UK dental sector. See our previous article on this here.
Given that acting in consumer facing markets remains a top priority for the CMA, as set out in its draft Annual Plan for 2026-2027 published on 21 January, the wider healthcare sector can expect continued focus.
Our competition & healthcare teams
Our firm’s competition team works closely with our healthcare regulatory specialists to monitor developments across the sector and provide clear, practical insight into the CMA’s processes. The team has experience supporting organisations across a range of healthcare markets in navigating competition law considerations, including market reviews, merger control, and regulatory engagement.
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