JERUSALEM, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- Israeli medical device company Mazor Robotics will be fully acquired by the global company Medtronic for 1.6 billion U.S. dollars, the two companies announced Friday.
This is the highest amount of "exit" deal for Israeli medical companies since the establishment of the state in 1948.
Medtronic has already held 12 percent of Mazor's shares, which it acquired in two rounds since May 2016, and is now buying the remaining 88 percent.
Mazor Robotics, founded in 2001, developed robotic guidance systems for spine surgeries that can be used by surgeons who specialize in orthopedics and neurosurgery.
Since its founding, the company, traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ, has lost more than 100 million dollars. In the first half of 2018, the company lost 5 million dollars.
Medtronic is among the world's largest medical equipment development companies and develops robotic guidance systems for spine and brain surgery.
It is based in Ireland's capital Dublin, and in Minneapolis, Minnesota and employs more than 86,000 people worldwide. It provides services to doctors, hospitals and patients in some 150 countries.
The deal will speed up Medtronic's transition to robotic-guided procedures. Through Mazor's systems, it can improve results in spinal surgery and reduce the lack of uniformity in results.
Mazor's CEO Uri Hadomi was questioned last year by the Israel Securities Authority on suspicion of using insider information concerning the previous deal with Medtronic, during which he became a shareholder in the company.
The investigators searched his home and the company's offices in Caesarea, and confiscated his mobile phone. The investigation is still ongoing.
