The rumors of impending European approval of Zimmer Holdings Inc.’s $13.3 billion takeover of Biomet, Inc. were true.
On March 30, 2015, the company announced that the European Union Commission cleared the deal conditional on the execution of divestiture of Zimmer’s uni knee, ZUK and Biomet’s Discovery Elbow throughout Europe. Zimmer must also divest Biomet’s Vanguard Total Knee System for primary and revision implants in Denmark and Sweden. The company said it expects to enter into agreements to divest those assets in the near-term.
The company still expects U.S. regulatory approval and closing of the deal in April.
On March 25, Zimmer also announced that the Japan Fair Trade Commission granted clearance of the acquisition.
When the deal closes, Zimmer will be the No. 2 player in the $45 billion global orthopedics market, trailing only Johnson & Johnson’s DePuy Synthes.
