Bittium Biosignals Ltd, a subsidiary of Bittium Corporation, and British ECG service provider, Technomed Limited, have today signed an agreement under which Bittium will purchase a 25 percent stake in Technomed's capital stock. The agreement will strengthen the partnership between the companies in the development of ECG technology that measure the electrical activity of the heart. This agreement will see Bittium's technology cooperation with European companies providing remote cardiology services expand. Bittium also has minority holdings in Swiss remote medical diagnostic services company evismo, and Coronaria Analyysipalvelut Ltd, a Finnish provider of ECG, sleep apnea and blood pressure analysis services.
Technomed Limited, trading as ECG On-Demand™, is an ECG service provider founded in 2001. The company has grown into one of the largest providers of ECG services in the United Kingdom. Technomed’s customers include NHS (National Healthcare Service) Trusts, private healthcare providers and cardiologists. Technomed has been using Bittium Faros™ ECG monitoring devices in its service offering for several years. The parties have agreed that the intensified cooperation will result in the use of other Bittium medical products and technologies via additional service offerings by ECG On-Demand™.
"We are very pleased to have the opportunity to deepen our technology cooperation with our long-term partner Technomed. Technomed has a prime market position and a growing customer base in the UK medical services market. Bittium's aim is to be a significant international supplier of monitoring and remote diagnostics technology solutions made for measuring and analyzing biosignals, and the partnership agreement signed today is a part of the strategic actions toward this goal. The partnership agreement, combined with Bittium's over 35 years of technical expertise in measuring and monitoring biosignals and analysis software development, provides us with a good foundation for developing the required technology for medical service business together," tells Arto Pietilä, Senior Vice President of Bittium Medical Technologies.
"Bittium is an important technology provider for us, and we are pleased this partnership agreement and strengthened cooperation will bring continuity and long-term stability to the benefit of all parties, including our customers. ECG-On-Demand™ is an independent, profitable, and regulatory compliant diagnostic testing facility (IDTF), specializing in remote 12-lead ECG interpretation and point-of-care or mail-order wearable ambulatory ECG-Holter monitoring. We are also one of the few ECG-Holter monitoring services operating in the UK who have been inspected and rated by the UK Healthcare regulator (Care Quality Commission) and approved by NHS Digital," says Mark Hashemi, the founder and CEO of Technomed.
The investment will be carried out as a share purchase, where Bittium will buy 25% of Technomed’s capital stock. The acquisition will be carried out when the technical conditions of the transaction are met. The share purchase does not change Bittium's financial outlook for the year 2021, published in Bittium Corporation Half Year Business Review on August 6, 2021. The parties have agreed not to publish the selling price.
About Bittium
Bittium specializes in the development of reliable, secure communications and connectivity solutions, leveraging its 35 year legacy of expertise in advanced radio communication technologies. Bittium provides innovative products and services, customized solutions based on its product platforms and R&D services. In the field of healthcare technology, Bittium offers solutions for the measurement and monitoring of biosignals in the areas of cardiology, neurophysiology, rehabilitation, occupational health and sports medicine. Net sales in 2020 were EUR 78.4 million and operating profit was EUR 2.1 million. Bittium is listed on Nasdaq Helsinki.
About Technomed
Technomed is a UK CQC inspected healthcare provider that uses a hybrid approach of Machine Learning (A.I.) and human expertise to deliver high-end arrhythmia diagnostic testing at point-of-care or by mail-order facility. The first NHS Digital assured, HSCN connected ECG monitoring service that affords customers flexible and interchangeable service solutions that meet the challenges of diagnostic delivery in today's changing healthcare landscape.