Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. has inked a definitive agreement to acquire Mesa Biotech Inc., a privately held molecular diagnostics company with a point-of-care (POC) platform, for approximately $450 million in cash. The scientific instruments and testing giant said it will pay an additional $100 million in cash upon the completion of certain milestones. The planned acquisition will expand Thermo Fisher’s franchise of diagnostic test options with a novel platform that enables nucleic acid polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing at the point of care.

Royal Philips NV will close on its $635 million acquisition of Capsule Technologies Inc. in the first quarter of 2021, continuing the expansion of the Dutch company's remote monitoring capabilities. Capsule's Medical Device Information Platform integrates nearly all medical devices used in hospitals with electronic health records in a vendor-neutral system. The deal has already received approval from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice.

The volume of med-tech deals and M&As in 2020 reached impressive levels, well above 2019, primarily due to the demands of a global pandemic, although the disclosed values of those alliances fell dramatically short. Even so, the spotlight that shined on digital health and diagnostics throughout the challenging year has potentially set up the med-tech industry for an influx of attention going forward.

Diagnostics innovator Renalytix AI plc and dialysis giant Davita Inc. partnered to develop a program to identify individuals with early-stage kidney disease and improve outcomes for the 37 million Americans with chronic kidney disease (CKD). The companies plan to launch the collaborative effort in three cities in 2021 to build a diverse, real-world evidence dataset as a base for moving forward.

Steris plc has agreed to buy Cantel Medical Corp. for approximately $3.6 billion, in a cash and stock transaction that unites two key players in the infection prevention space. The combined company offers a number of synergies. Cantel’s medical portfolio is expected to bolster and expand Steris’ endoscopy offerings, with a full-suite of high-level disinfection consumables, capital equipment and services plus single-use accessories.

While the first quarter may be a little slow as the winter COVID-19 surge continues to disrupt business, expect high capital reserves in med tech and life sciences to make 2021 a year for brisk deal activity, according to the 2021 Ernst & Young (EY) M&A Firepower report. In 2020, industry M&A activity fell to the lowest levels since 2014, but the multinational audit and consulting firm found that the industry now has record levels of deal capacity that it is poised to use to accelerate growth coming out of the pandemic.

Just a week into 2021 and Hologic Inc. is planning another acquisition. The company announced that it has agreed to acquire the molecular diagnostics testing company Biotheranostics Inc. for roughly $230 million cash up front. This comes on the heels of completing the acquisition of Somatex Medical Technologies GmbH for about $64 million. The acquisition of San Diego-based Biotheranostics is expected to close in February 2021, pending antitrust clearance.

Perkinelmer Inc. is aiming to boost its infectious disease testing footprint with the acquisition of Oxford Immunotec Global plc for $591 million in cash. The purchase, reported Thursday, will allow Perkinelmer to expand its current offerings with solutions for tuberculosis (TB) detection. Perkinelmer shares (NYSE:PKI) hit a high of $162.16 Thursday morning, before closing at $160.53 – up 2.66% from the Wednesday’s close of $156.37.

Pixium Vision SA and Second Sight Medical Products Inc. have inked a definitive agreement through which the former will become the controlling shareholder of the newly combined company. The transaction also will result in the creation of a new entity that will focus on cortical stimulation through Orion. Second Sight is developing that product, which bypasses the diseased eye and could provide a new form of vision.

Flowonix Medical Inc. and Swk Holdings Corp. closed a $33 million financing that included $10 million in debt facility from Swk in addition to $23 million in a series B round led by returning investor Farallon Capital Management with support from several new investors. The financing will replace approximately $7.5 million in prior venture debt from Hercules Capital. It will also fund development of new products, entry into new disease markets, production expansion, and partnerships with pharmaceutical companies.