http://www.reuters.com/article/us-monsanto-m-a-bayer-deal-idUSKCN11K128
German drugs and crop chemicals company Bayer has won over U.S. seeds firm Monsanto with an improved takeover offer of $66 billion including debt, ending months of wrangling after increasing its bid for a third time. The $128 a share deal announced on Wednesday, up from Bayer's previous offer of $127.50 a share, is the biggest of the year so far and the largest cash bid on record.
The transaction will create a company commanding more than a quarter of the combined world market for seeds and pesticides in a fast-consolidating farm supplies industry. However, competition authorities are likely to scrutinize the tie-up closely, and some of Bayer's own shareholders have been critical of a takeover plan which they say is too expensive and risks neglecting the company's pharmaceutical business.
"Bayer's competitors are merging, so not doing this deal would mean having a competitive disadvantage," said Markus Manns, a fund manager at Union Investment, one of Bayer's top 12 investors, according to ThomsonReuters data.
(Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 15 2016, @03:30PM
1. Take two of the most unethical multinational corporations in history.
2. Merge them and let them have a monopolistic level control over foodstuffs in a handful of countries including the USA where food safety has been subject to complete regulatory capture.
3. ???
4. Fun times ahoy!
I'd recommend they really seal the deal by merging with DuPont as well.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 15 2016, @04:43PM
In the own words of Marijn Dekkers Bayer's CEO their drugs are not for poor people [youtube.com].
Likewise, Monsanto GMOs are only for people that can pay them, even if are due to contaminatation by nearby crops.
Now pushing for copyright infringment to be punished with 10 years in prison.
Soon medicines and food only for those that pay them (or slave for them). Or for criminals that pirate they IP dare to plant their own crops or for criminals in prison for copyright infringment.
I'm going to skip the 1984, Farenheit 451, Brazil references since the scientific papers are already paywalled by publisher corps and the next step probably will be to burn all the books.