Lunit gets court approval for Volpara acquisition in New Zealand

South Korean medical AI company Lunit announced on Thursday that it received the first approval from the High Court of New Zealand for its plan to acquire New Zealand-based AI breast cancer diagnostics solutions company Volpara Health Technologies.

According to Lunit, the acquisition approval process of the New Zealand court consists of two main steps.

The first step is the approval of the shareholders' meeting and the sale vote, and the second is to review the validity and effectiveness of the meeting results.

Following approval for the acquisition investment from the New Zealand financial authorities last month, Volpara will hold a shareholders meeting on April 12. 

In December last year, Lunit signed a deal to acquire 100% of Volpara's shares for $193.1 million. 

Volpara was Established in 2009 in Wellington. It has specialized in breast cancer diagnostic AI platforms. Its products are used in more than 2,000 medical institutions, accounting for a third of the breast imaging screening facilities in the US. 

"Volpara will contribute to Lunit's bid to build a super AI platform and secure sales in the United States," CEO of Lunit Suh Beom-Seok said. "We expect to complete the acquisition by May."

Write to Yena Kim at yena@hankyung.com