Bain Capital has agreed to buy Olympus Corp’s scientific instruments business for 428 billion yen ($3.1 billion), as the Japanese medical device company shifts its focus further into healthcare.
Olympus expects to transfer the unit on Jan. 4 and take the proceeds from the sale in the fourth quarter of the fiscal year ending March 31, according to a company statement.
The sale is part of CEO Yasuo Takeuchi’s plan to pivot the company in the direction of healthcare, with the goal of becoming the leading endoscopy instrument maker.
The unit being acquired by Bain Capital, called Evident, reported operating profit of 18 billion yen and sales of 119 billion yen a year ago.
Evident was also “viewed” by other private equity firms such as Carlyle Group and Polaris Capital Group in the first round of an auction that ended on May 9, Nikkei reported, without citing its sources.
Olympus, which was founded and built its reputation as one of Japan’s top camera and endoscope makers, seeing the camera industry essentially decommissioned by smartphones, is betting on medical devices and its 70% market share endoscopes worldwide, as a new driver of growth.
Source: Capital
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