The Brief:
New York-listed Hims & Hers Health acquires Australian telehealth giant Eucalyptus in a deal worth up to A$1.6bn.
Gilbert + Tobin advised Eucalyptus while MinterEllison acted for Hims & Hers.
Seven years ago, Eucalyptus was a scrappy Sydney startup with an ambitious plan to reinvent healthcare delivery. Now, it’s subject to one of the largest trade sales of a venture-backed Australian company on record.
New York-listed Hims & Hers Health has agreed to acquire the Sydney-founded telehealth group in a deal worth up to US$1.15bn (A$1.6bn), folding Eucalyptus into its international division and handing a major payday to founders, early investors and staff.
The background
Eucalyptus was founded in 2019 by Tim Doyle, Benny Kleist, Charlie Gearside and Alexey Mitko. The company built out a portfolio of telehealth brands:
Pilot for men’s health
Juniper for women’s weight management
Kin for fertility
Software for prescription skincare.
By the time Hims & Hers came calling, Eucalyptus was serving more than 775,000 patients across Australia, the UK, Germany, Canada and Japan, with an annual revenue run-rate north of US$450m (A$640m).
But the relationship didn’t start there.
Hims & Hers founder Andrew Dudum first met founder Tim Doyle in 2021.
I was taken aback by the grit and the ambition and the consumer obsession that Tim had…They were entering new markets at a crazy pace. They were testing and iterating with a really small team, and they were moving very fast, like very, very fast.
By the time serious talks began, both companies had matured. Dudum said, “As we were having conversations about what their next three to five years looked like, and what ours looked like, you know, they looked the same.”
That alignment led Doyle to shelve a planned capital raise and accept the buyout instead.
The deal
The transaction is structured three tranches:
Hims & Hers will pay approx US$240m in cash at closing, expected midway through 2026.
US$710m in guaranteed deferred payments will follow 18 months after closing.
On top, Eucalyptus can earn up to US$200m in earnout payments tied to hitting specified financial targets.
Doyle, who holds roughly 10% of the company — a stake valued at around US$115m — will stay on to run Hims & Hers’ international operations.
The deal also marks a clean exit for Eucalyptus’ backer group, which includes Blackbird Ventures, Airtree Ventures, Woolworths’ W23 Ventures, BOND, OneVentures and Athletic Ventures.
And for employees who took equity early, it is shaping up as one of the largest ESOP payout in Australian startup history.
Who’s acting
Gilbert + Tobin advised Eucalyptus, with partners Adam D’Andreti and Xavier Keary. leading. Cooley acted as Eucalyptus’ US counsel.
Financial advisers Barrenjoey and Goldman Sachs in New York were also on the ticket, alongside PwC.
MinterEllison acted for Hims & Hers, led by Daniel Scotti and Nicole Sloggett.
What they said
Tim Doyle, Eucalyptus founder said:
“Hims & Hers is the best-positioned business in the world to be the home for consumer health. They've set the bar for what it means to be focused on the patient for the last decade — and as we accelerate toward the future, being part of what is fast becoming the leading global consumer health platform is extremely exciting.”
Blackbird partner Nick Crocker, who led the seed round nine years ago, said:
“A USD1.15 billion acquisition demonstrates what’s possible when the best Australian founders build global businesses. This is a win for the entire Australian ecosystem — founders, employees, and investors.”
Source: Hims Investor Relations, AFR, Capital Brief, G+T