As of today, Toshiba's medical business will become independent from the Toshiba Group, according to a statement formally announcing the completion of the sale to Canon, Inc. The sale reportedly included 134,980,000 shares of Toshiba Medical Systems common stock at an acquisition price of just under $6 billion (¥665.5 billion yen).

As soon as competition law process is completed by Canon Inc. the medical unit will become a Canon Group company, but will retain its company name and brand for an undisclosed period.

Meanwhile, Fujifilm Holdings Corp, which had also been in the running to acquire Toshiba's medical division, has raised questions about the timing of the planned sale. According to Reuters, it issued a letter to Toshiba questioning media reports that said the deal would close in time for the sale to contribute to Toshiba's finances in the fiscal year through March — a deadline that could be hard to make in light of anti-monopoly laws.
"The United States, Europe, China and others have M&A regulations similar to Japan's anti-monopoly laws... We would like to know Toshiba's understanding on this question, and whether it has arranged special measures for this," the letter said.

Reuters called the move "a rare challenge by a failed bidder in Japan," and reported that Fujifilm demanded a reply to the letter by 0600 GMT on Thursday, but Toshiba declined on Wednesday to comment on the letter and whether or not it will respond to it.

A statement from Canon referenced a five-year initiative, launched this year, called the Excellent Global Corporation Plan. Under Phase V of that plan, the company will embrace growth through a strategic transformation that includes cultivating its health care business.

Besides having a strong presence in MR, X-ray, nuclear medicine and ultrasound, Canon described Toshiba's CT business as particularly strong. It said that the acquisition will allow Canon to accelerate into new fields, improve the quality of its products through shared technology development capabilities, and expand its business domain.

In its own statement, Toshiba Medical described the transaction as a great opportunity, saying it would continue its work in promoting health care based on its "proprietary technologies, strong sales performance, and high-quality services" in its new role as a part of the Canon Group.

The date of the common stock acquisition has yet to be determined.

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