Italian Consortium Acquires Esaote

Banca Intesa (Milan, Italy) and the Bracco Group (Milan, Italy), a global leader in diagnostic imaging, have agreed to the sale of Esaote SpA (Genova, Italy) to a consortium of investors led by Banca Intesa, including Prof. Carlo Castellano, current chairman and CEO of Esaote.

The transaction is part of Banca Intesa's strategy to sustain Italy's development by supporting entrepreneurs who invest in innovation and long-term growth by the acquisition of equity stakes. The sale of Esaote stems from a precise strategic decision for the Bracco Group headed by Diana Bracco: on the one hand, to focus on the development of new proprietary systems with a cutting-edge innovation content in the sector of diagnostics and targeted therapy; on the other hand, to further increase its competitive capacities on the global international markets in which Bracco competes.

Esaote, with a consolidated turnover exceeding 240 million euros--of which approximately 60% was generated in international markets--is the leader in Italy in the sector of biomedical appliances (specifically, ultrasound, targeted magnetic resonance [MR], and software to manage the diagnostic process). Esaote has its industrial and research units in Italy and the Netherlands, and in 2004 established a joint venture in China for the production of ecographic equipment, in which it has an 80% stake.

Corrado Passera, managing director and CEO of Banca Intesa SpA, commented, "Esaote is an extremely successful industrial and technological entity in the Italian research panorama. One of Banca Intesa's missions is to sustain Italian companies which are sound from an industrial standpoint, have considerable technological competencies, and are significant in terms of employment.”

Diana Bracco, chairman and managing director of Bracco SpA stated, "Over the years, the Bracco group has become the sole Italian global player in the sector of contrast methods for diagnostic imaging with market shares which are, on average, about 30% in the United States and Germany, and close to 50% in Italy and Japan.”




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