Point-of-care ultrasound manufacturer Butterfly Network announced Tuesday that it has gone public on the New York Stock Exchange after completing its merger with Longview Acquisition Corp.
The agreement with Longview, an acquisition firm affiliated with hedge fund Glenview Capital Management, is valued at $1.5 billion. As a result of the deal, Butterfly received nearly $589 million before transaction fees, including $414 million in cash held by Longview’s trust account and $175 million from private placement investors.
The newly formed Butterfly Network Inc. made its NYSE debut today, with its Class A common stock opening at $24.80 per share under the ticker “BFLY,” according to the exchange.
“2020 was a milestone year for Butterfly as we made significant progress towards fulfilling our mission to deliver innovative ultrasound technology that is easy to use, integrates into clinical decision-making workflow, and ultimately lowers the cost of care," Founder and Chairman of the Board Jonathan Rothberg, PhD, said in an announcement. "Today marks yet another significant moment for the company that will enable us to expand and accelerate our collective vision.”
Rothberg also founded portable MRI company Hyperfine, which just secured $90 million in financing to ramp up business operations and further develop its Swoop modality.
Back in January, Butterfly welcomed Todd Fruchterman, MD, PhD, as its new CEO, replacing former chief executive Laurent Faracci. Fruchterman, who spent the last decade of his professional career with 3M, also commented on the day’s events.
“By making ultrasound more accessible and deployable across a variety of care settings, we have the opportunity to expand the use cases of ultrasound and impact disease interception, helping clinicians make more informed decisions to take action earlier,” he said. “As we further develop our roadmap, we plan to partner with our customers to expand into novel market applications including chronic disease management, which impacts more than 100 million patients in the United States alone.”
Matt joined Chicago’s TriMed team in 2018 covering all areas of health imaging after two years reporting on the hospital field. He holds a bachelor’s in English from UIC, and enjoys a good cup of coffee and an interesting documentary.