[5] Olympus holds roughly a 70 percent share of the global endoscope market, estimated to be worth approximately US$2.5 billion.

In 2011, Olympus attracted worldwide media scrutiny when it fired its CEO Michael Christopher Woodford for whistleblowing, and the matter snowballed into a corporate corruption investigation[6] with multiple arrests.

[11] It used a half-frame format, taking 72 18×24 mm photographs on a standard 36-exposure 35mm film cassette,[12] which made Pen cameras compact and portable for their time.

[citation needed] A second version of the system was available the year after, but this was Olympus's last foray into the world of consumer video equipment until digital cameras became popular.

The lack of mirrors allowed the camera body to be a lot smaller than that of a DSLR, while maintaining its image quality and the interchangeability of the lenses.

It maintained the Micro Four Thirds system, but added a built-in electronic viewfinder, a more ergonomic button layout packaged in a retro style chassis.

On 1 January 2021, 95% of the shares in OM Digital Solutions were transferred to OJ Holdings, Ltd, a specially established subsidiary of Japan Industrial Partners.

[26][27][28] Olympus has acquired the Israeli medical device company Medi-Tate, a move aimed at enhancing its portfolio in the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).

Its flagship product, the iTind, is a temporarily implanted nitinol device that alleviates lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) associated with BPH.

The iTind procedure can be performed by a urologist in various settings, including outpatient hospital facilities, ambulatory surgery centers, or a doctor’s office.

The device works by gradually expanding and applying gentle pressure at three specific points, reshaping the prostatic urethra and the bladder neck to provide symptom relief.

[30] This new model was made available for purchase in September 2022 by Olympus in Europe, Middle East, Africa, and parts of Asia, Oceania and Japan under the brand name "VISERA ELITE III".

Mr Kikukawa resigned in the following year and was arrested by Tokyo police for alleged criminal offenses during and before his term as president and CEO.

[42] In 2011, the company attracted worldwide media scrutiny when it fired its newly appointed English chief executive (CEO) Michael Christopher Woodford, a 30-year Olympus veteran, for probing into financial irregularities and unexplained payments totaling hundreds of millions of US dollars.

Although the board initially dismissed Woodford's concerns via mass media as "disruptive" and Woodford himself as failing to grasp the local culture, the matter quickly snowballed into a corporate corruption[6] scandal concerning alleged concealment of more than ¥117.7 billion ($1.5 billion) in investment losses, kickbacks, and covert payments to criminal organizations dating back as far as the 1980s.

[43][44][45][46] One of the longest-lasting accounting scandals in Japanese corporate history,[47] the incident wiped out over three-quarters of the company's valuation[48] and led much of the board to resign in disgrace.

[52] On 1 April 2011, Michael Christopher Woodford, 51, was named president and chief operating officer – the first ever foreigner to hold the position – replacing Kikukawa, who became chairman.

[53] Woodford alleged that his removal was linked to several prior acquisitions he questioned, particularly the US$2.2 billion deal in 2008 to acquire British medical equipment maker Gyrus Group.

[54] Shareholders expressed concern after Olympus's share price nearly halved in value following the Woodford revelations, and asked for "prompt action".

On the Gyrus acquisition, it also declared the Audit Board's view that "no dishonesty or illegality is found in the transaction itself, nor any breach of obligation to good management or any systematic errors by the directors recognised.

The company laid the blame for the inappropriate accounting on ex-president Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, auditor Hideo Yamada, and executive VP Hisashi Mori.

[8] On October 28, 2024, CEO Stefan Kaufmann was forced to resign by the Olympus board of directors after allegations of purchasing illegal narcotics.

[58] On November 28 a 44-year old man was re-arrested on drug dealing and extortion charges, allegedly forcing Kaufmann to pay 9,150,000 yen across 23 payments as hush money.