Olympus: Gyrus Purchase Advisory Fee Not Unreasonably Expensive

Olympus Corp. (7733.TO) Thursday defended payments for controversial past acquisitions, saying financial advisory fees it paid in the purchase of U.K. medical technology firm Gyrus Group weren't excessive, and there was nothing illegal about the purchase of four firms.

"The fees were determined at the contract signing, so we do not believe they were unreasonably expensive," the company said in a statement.

The acquisitions in question involve a $687 million payout to a financial adviser based in the Cayman Islands for its assistance in the $1.9 billion purchase of Gyrus in 2008. However, the fees the company refers to in the statement don't include the bulk of the $687 million in question.

Olympus also bought three small Japanese companies for a total of Y73.49 billion ($966 million) between 2006 and 2008.

At a press conference Thursday, newly appointment President Shuichi Takayama defended the purchases, saying the acquisitions were all planned within the context of its medium- to long-term strategy.

On Wednesday, Takayama took over after Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, a 47-year veteran of the maker of cameras and medical-imaging equipment, resigned as chairman and president, citing investor and client concerns in the two weeks since he dismissed Chief Executive Michael Woodford.

But the scandal over expensive acquisitions and fees seems unlikely to be defused by Kikukawa's exit after Olympus lost more than half its market value since removing Woodford Oct. 14.

-By Juro Osawa and Kana Inagaki, Dow Jones Newswires; 813 6269 2794; [e-mail]