Merck Announces Agreement to Sell Amnis® Flow Cytometry and Guava® Technologies Businesses to Luminex Corporation

• All associated reagents under these brands included in the deal
• Strategic agreement allows Luminex to increase footprint in multi-billion-dollar flow cytometry market
• Deal expected to close at end of 2018

Darmstadt, Germany, October 18, 2018 — Merck, the vibrant science and technology company, today announced the signing of a definitive agreement to sell its Flow Cytometry unit to Luminex Corporation for €62.5 million¹. The closing of the transaction, expected by the end of 2018, is subject to customary closing conditions.

Upon completion of the transaction, Luminex will own the flow cytometry platforms Amnis® and Guava® and the associated reagents under those brands. This includes a portfolio of leading technologies serving the research space. Merck continues to actively manage its comprehensive portfolio by tapping into innovation and placing it in the best hands to continuously drive value for customers.

“This is an exciting opportunity for both of our organizations and I would like to extend my sincerest thanks to our committed colleagues,” said Udit Batra, member of the Merck Executive Board and CEO, Life Science. “Luminex is a long and trusted partner who has provided a wide range of solutions for clinical diagnostics, pharmaceutical drug discovery and biomedical research. Luminex shares our conviction to solve the toughest problems in life science. This will be a great new home for the team to build on their expertise and introduce more solutions to a broader base. At the same time, our existing customers will get access to Luminex’s respected product portfolio.”

The acquisition expands Luminex’s existing offering of flow-based detection systems, which is focused on its xMAP® multiplexing technology, with more than 15,000 xMAP® systems sold worldwide. Merck’s ImageStream®X Mark II Imaging Flow Cytometer, for example, has extremely high sensitivity and is used to detect and characterize small particles.

“As innovators in flow-based technologies, we are excited to acquire the flow cytometry assets of our existing long-term partner Merck, thereby expanding our portfolio of detection systems to address researchers interested in cellular analysis,” said Homi Shamir, president and CEO of Luminex. “We look forward to welcoming the talented Merck team to the Luminex family.”

¹ Consisting of approximately €58.3 million to be paid under a Stock and Asset Purchase Agreement and approximately €4.2 million in committed inventory purchases. USD amount converted EUR 1 = $ 1.20.

About Luminex Corporation

At Luminex, our mission is to empower labs to obtain reliable, timely, and actionable answers, ultimately advancing health. We offer a wide range of solutions applicable in diverse markets including clinical diagnostics, pharmaceutical drug discovery, biomedical research, genomic and proteomic research, biodefense research, and food safety. We accelerate reliable answers while simplifying complexity and deliver certainty with a seamless experience. To learn more about Luminex, please visit us at www.luminexcorp.com.

Follow Merck on Twitter @Merckgroup, on Facebook @merckgroup and on LinkedIn.

About Merck

Merck, a leading science and technology company, operates across healthcare, life science, and electronics. Around 58,000 employees work to make a positive difference to millions of people’s lives every day by creating more joyful and sustainable ways to live. From advancing gene-editing technologies and discovering unique ways to treat the most challenging diseases to enabling the intelligence of devices – the company is everywhere. In 2020, Merck generated sales of € 17.5 billion in 66 countries.

Scientific exploration and responsible entrepreneurship have been key to Merck’s technological and scientific advances. This is how Merck has thrived since its founding in 1668. The founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed company. Merck holds the global rights to the Merck name and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the business sectors of Merck operate as EMD Serono in healthcare, MilliporeSigma in life science, and EMD Electronics.