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Boston Scientific announced it has signed an agreement to acquire VENITI, Inc., a privately-held company in Fremont, California which has developed and commercialized the VICI VENOUS STENT System for treating venous obstructive disease. Boston Scientific has been an investor in VENITI since 2016 and currently owns 25 percent of the company. The transaction price for the remaining stake consists of $108M up-front cash, as well as up to $52M in payments contingent upon U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval of the VICI stent system. Venous obstructive disease - instances of abnormal, blocked or damaged veins - affects more than 1.1 million people in the United States and Western Europe annually. Vein obstructions, often caused by conditions such as deep vein thrombosis, post thrombotic syndrome and May-Thurner syndrome, can prevent proper blood circulation and cause patients to experience pain, swelling, ulcers and a diminished quality of life. Physicians often choose to open the obstructed vessel with a stent to reinstate proper blood flow to the heart and lungs and reduce a patient's symptoms. The self-expanding, nitinol VICI stent system was developed specifically for use in the venous anatomy, which presents different challenges than placing stents in the arterial vascular system. The VICI stent is designed to withstand compression and maintain patency and flexibility over the course of a patient's life expectancy. The acquisition of VENITI is expected to be immaterial to Boston Scientific EPS in 2018 and 2019, and accretive thereafter. The completion of this transaction is imminent, subject to customary closing conditions.