Bausch & Lomb Buys Eyeonics

Bausch & Lomb has agreed to acquire Eyeonics Inc., an Aliso Viejo, Calif.-based maker of ophthalmic medical devices like intraocular lens implants. No financial terms were disclosed for the deal, which is expected to close later this quarter.

Bausch & Lomb was recently acquired by Warburg Pincus. Eyeonics had raised $43.5 million in VC funding since 1998, including a Series E round in late 2005 at a post-money valuation of approximately $84.2 million. Backers include ABS Ventures, Brentwood Venture Capital, Pequot Capital and Versant Ventures.

PRESS RELEASE

Bausch & Lomb, the global eye health company, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire eyeonics, inc., a rapidly growing, privately held ophthalmic medical device company headquartered in Aliso Viejo, Calif. Financial terms of the transaction, which is expected to close during the first quarter of 2008 subject to standard regulatory approval, were not disclosed.

Upon completion of the acquisition, eyeonics' operations will become part of Bausch & Lomb's surgical business, which offers a complete line of standard intraocular lenses, phacoemulsification equipment, vitreoretinal and refractive products to ophthalmologists worldwide. The U.S. surgical business will be led by J. Andy Corley, eyeonics' co-founder, chairman, and chief executive officer.

eyeonics, founded in 1998, developed and markets the crystalens intraocular lens (IOL), the first and only U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved accommodating IOL for the treatment of cataracts. The crystalens IOL replaces the eye's natural lens and has been implanted in more than 95,000 eyes worldwide.

Accommodation is the eye's method to achieve near-distance focusing by altering the curvature of the natural crystalline lens, allowing a person to easily read small type used in books, restaurant menus, and on computer monitors. As the natural lens ages, accommodation decreases. This results in a condition known as presbyopia for most people over age 40, for which reading glasses are commonly required. Other approved IOLs only permit focusing at a fixed distances, while the crystalens IOL mimics the accommodating characteristics of a natural lens.

“This represents our first acquisition since Bausch & Lomb became a private company in a transaction led by Warburg Pincus,” said Ronald L. Zarrella, chairman and CEO, Bausch & Lomb. “We are excited to enter a new phase of growth and innovation, and believe the eyeonics acquisition is another sign of our commitment to delivering innovative, high-quality products to ophthalmologists and patients worldwide.”

Zarrella continued, “This acquisition immediately places Bausch & Lomb into the rapidly expanding premium IOL market. The crystalens technology complements our existing cataract surgical business, including our Stellaris