MOSCOW (MRC) -- On Tuesday, Bayer obtained conditional approval from the Antitrust Division of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) for the proposed acquisition of Monsanto, as per the company's press release.
"“Receipt of the DOJ’s approval brings us close to our goal of creating a leading company in agriculture," said Bayer CEO Werner Baumann. "We want to help farmers across the world grow more nutritious food in a more sustainable way." Bayer has now obtained almost all clearances which are conditions for closing the transaction. The company expects to receive any outstanding approvals required for completing the transaction very shortly.
Bayer will become the sole shareholder of Monsanto Company following the receipt of outstanding approvals. According to the DOJ’s conditional approval, the integration of Monsanto into Bayer can take place as soon as the divestments to BASF have been accomplished. This is expected to be in approximately two months.
We remind that in September 2017, Monsanto accepted an increased takeover bid of USD128/share from Bayer, paving the way for Bayer to acquire Monsanto in an all-cash transaction valued at USD66 billion.
And, as MRC informed before, in late March 2018, Bayer received the green light from the EU to buy Monsanto, after promising to sell off substantial parts of its business, clearing a major hurdle to the last of a trio of mega-mergers consolidating the global agrochemical industry.
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the fields of health care, agriculture and high-tech polymer materials. As an innovation company, it sets trends in research-intensive areas. Bayer's products and services are designed to benefit people and improve their quality of life. At the same time, the Group aims to create value through innovation, growth and high earning power. Bayer is committed to the principles of sustainable development and to its social and ethical responsibilities as a corporate citizen. In fiscal 2017, the Group employed around 99,800 people and had sales of EUR 35.0 billion. Capital expenditures amounted to EUR 2.4 billion, R&D expenses to EUR 4.5 billion.
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