PHARMACEUTICALS

GUIDANT REACHES DEAL WITH JOHNSON & JOHNSON INDIANAPOLIS – Guidant and Johnson & Johnson said late yesterday they had reached an agreement under which J&J would acquire the medical device maker for $23.2 billion. J&J’s latest offer topped its own former $21.5 billion bid, but fell short of rival Boston Scientific Corporation’s $25 billion offer.

Guidant’s board said it would recommend that shareholders vote in favor of the revised deal during a scheduled January 31 meeting, according to a joint statement from both companies. Both companies’ boards unanimously approved the revised J&J offer, the companies said.

Under the new agreement, J&J will pay $37.25 in cash and 0.493 shares of Johnson & Johnson common stock for each outstanding Guidant share.

The transaction would have a per share value of $68.06 based on yesterday’s market close.

– Associated Press

LAW ENFORCEMENT

ONLINE PAYMENTS, GIFT CARDS HINDER DETECTION OF MONEY LAUNDERING Online payment systems and gift cards are among the greatest threats to the American government’s ability to detect and prevent money laundering, federal officials said.

Some online payments services are ill-equipped to keep records of transactions and verify who their customers are, according to a report issued yesterday in Washington by federal regulators. Stored-value cards allow people without bank accounts to gain access to illicit cash through ATMs worldwide, said the report compiled by the Treasury Department, the Justice Department, the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Reserve, and the U.S. Postal Service.

The report describes the threat to America from money laundering in which criminals or terrorists attempt to hide ill-gotten gains or funds to pay for terrorist acts. Officials said they plan to use the report, billed as the first government-wide analysis of the problem, to work together better to combat money laundering.

“We’ve diagnosed the problem, it’s time to come forth with the medicine,” said Chris Swecker, assistant director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, at a news conference to release the report. Besides the FBI, other agencies involved in the assessment included the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, the Drug Enforcement Agency, and the Internal Revenue Service.

– Bloomberg News

IN BRIEF

NBC Universal, the owner of the third most-watched television network, hired Katherine Pope to oversee development of prime-time series, replacing Ghen Maynard, who left after less than two years in the role … Gap, the largest American clothing chain, will increase last-minute orders and buy more merchandise in North America to respond faster to fashion trends after sales tumbled last year … Crude oil rose, approaching a 3-month high, a day after Iran’s decision to resume research on uranium reprocessing raised the specter of sanctions on OPEC’s second-biggest oil supplier.

– Bloomberg News