FAST NEWS: MicroPort MedBot vascular surgical robot approved in China

The latest: Shanghai MicroPort MedBot (Group) Co. Ltd. (2522.HK) announced on Wednesday its R-ONE Vascular Interventional Surgical Robot jointly developed with France’s Robocath S.A.S has been approved by China’s National Medical Products Administration.

Looking up: The R-ONE is expected to fill a gap for percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) surgical robots in China.

Take Note: The approval will result in sales-related expenses for MicroPort MedBot like salaries and promotions to commercialize the product.

Digging Deeper: Factors like high costs, lack of qualified doctors and special license policies are all limiting surgical robot use in China, even as competition in the field heats up. The MedBot brand is up against imported products such as the sophisticated Da Vinci robot from the U.S., as well as a host of newly approved devices from other Chinese manufacturers. Still, the market’s relative immaturity has kept investors interested in the area. MicroPort MedBot has been a beneficiary of such interest, attracting big name investors like Aspex Management, Hillhouse Capital and Lilly Asia Ventures when it went public in 2021.

Market Reaction: MicroPort MedBot shares fell on Thursday, closing down 1.8% at HK$19.42 by the midday break. The stock now trades near the lower end of its 52-week range.

Translation by A. Au

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