Amsterdam’s Slotervaart hospital is on the verge of being taken over by the private healthcare group run by former doctor Loek Winter, Nos televsion said on Thursday, quoting sources close to the deal.

The Slotervaart hospital is already in private hands but is facing financial trouble and, Nos says, house banker ING and health insurance giant Achmea are pressing for a speedy deal.

The deal with Winter’s MC Groep was worked out in secret and was unknown to shareholder and former chairwoman Aysel Erbudak. She has now gone to court in an effort to have the deal halted.

The sources say Winter is poised to pay €29m for the hospital, which Erbudak told the Nos is a bargain. She says the administrators should be given more time to find other potential buyers.

Winter’s MC Group already owns various other healthcare organisations, including the IJsselmeer hospital group which got into financial difficulty in 2009.