Dive Brief
Boston Scientific has canceled a planned $230 million acquisition of a majority stake in M.I.Tech, a Korean manufacturer of non-vascular stents.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) shared news of the cancelation, claiming that Boston Scientific took the action in response to investigations by its staff and overseas enforcement partners.

Boston Scientific, which is reportedly considering a $10 billion takeover of cardiovascular device maker ShockWave, agreed to buy a 64% stake in M.I.Tech in June and originally expected to close the deal in the second half of 2022.

Dive Insight
M.I.Tech is a publicly traded Korean manufacturer of medical devices for endoscopic and urologic procedures, including a line of non-vascular, self-expanding metal stents that Boston Scientific has distributed in Japan since 2015. At the time of the agreement, Boston Scientific framed the products as complementary to its portfolio, and the deal as a way to help M.I.Tech expand internationally.

The failure to close the deal in the second half of last year as planned provided early evidence that there was a problem. In February, Boston Scientific told investors it was “working towards closing during the second quarter of 2023, subject to customary regulatory approvals.”

It appears the companies faced a fight to secure the regulatory approvals. M.I.Tech revealed the deal had been canceled last week in a Korean-language notice that said approval for the agreement had not been obtained in some overseas countries and was unlikely to be secured in the future.

“Our agreement to purchase the majority stake of M.I. Tech Co., Ltd, from Synergy Innovation Co., Ltd, required global regulatory approvals that we were not able to obtain in some countries,” Kate Haranis, a spokesperson for Boston Scientific, wrote in an email on Friday.

Boston Scientific has now signed a new agreement to purchase a 9.9% stake in M.I.Tech, and will continue distributing the stent in Japan, Haranis wrote.

“I am pleased that Boston Scientific and M.I. Tech have abandoned their proposed transaction in response to investigations by FTC staff and our overseas enforcement partners. The FTC will not hesitate to take action in enforcing the antitrust laws to protect patients and doctors. I would like to thank the entire FTC team for their excellent work on this matter,” Holly Vedova, director of the FTC’s bureau of competition, said in a statement.

Vedova’s statement did not specify why regulators opposed the transaction.

Reference：
https://www.medtechdive.com/news/boston-scientific-BSX-cancels-MITech-acquisitionarriers/651400/