LivaNova’s Heart Valve Business to Be Acquired by Gyrus Capital

December 3, 2020—LivaNova PLC and Gyrus Capital announced they have entered into an agreement whereby entities funded and controlled by Gyrus will acquire the LivaNova heart valve (HV) business.

In November 2019, LivaNova announced that it was ending its Caisson transcatheter mitral valve replacement program and would be undertaking a restructuring of its heart valve business to improve profitability and ensure business continuity.

According to the latest announcement, the LivaNova HV business is a comprehensive portfolio of products, including the Perceval sutureless aortic valve, along with tissue and mechanical valves. The HV business employs approximately 900 employees worldwide with major operations in Saluggia, Italy, and Vancouver, Canada. LivaNova PLC is headquartered in London, United Kingdom.

Gyrus Capital, which is based in Geneva, Switzerland, is an investment firm dedicated to investments in the health care and sustainability sectors. The HV business will be led by Christian Mazzi and supported by the existing LivaNova HV team.

The LivaNova Board of Directors unanimously approved the divestiture, which it believes will enable the company to focus on its primary platforms (neuromodulation and cardiovascular) and to dedicate increased resources toward executing its pipeline opportunities. Once the transaction is complete, Gyrus intends to focus management attention and investment on the HV business to position it to become a leading player in the surgical heart valve market.

The companies advised that the divestiture of the HV business (with the exception of the French HV business for which LivaNova has been granted a binding offer by an affiliate of Gyrus and a decision remains to be made) is for an enterprise value of €60 million and expected to be complete in the first half of 2021, subject to customary purchase price adjustments, €10 million of which will be paid at the end of 2022.