US health giant buys Opakim medical devices

Another giant investment was made in Turkey's health sector, which is currently attracting major foreign investors. Saint Jude Medical, one of the biggest hospital chains in the U.S., purchased Opakim Tıbbi Ürünler's cardiovascular medical devices unit, marking its first investment in Turkey. The parties reached an agreement, and the official transaction will be completed within the coming weeks after all the official authorizations are obtained.

Established in Minnesota in 1976, Saint Jude Medical's shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), and the company's turnover last year was $6 billion. Active in 100 countries with 16,000 employees, the hospital group's assets are around $11 billion. Opakim, the American health giant's first choice for investment in Turkey, was established in 1992 and focuses mostly on cardiovascular diseases in collaboration with General Electric's health unit, GE Healthcare in Turkey. The most significant investments in the Turkish health industry being made by American companies are in medicine. In 2012, the American pharmaceutical giant Amgen acquired Mustafa Nevzat for $700 million. Another prominent company -- Johns Hopkins Medicine International of the prestigious Johns Hopkins University - collaborates with Anadolu Sağlık, Anadolu Group's health unit. Parexel International has taken over Atlas Medical, a clinical trial service company.