It's a record breaking $66-billion transaction between German owned Bayer and St. Louis, MO based seed and pesticide company Monsanto.
In a release today, Bayer and Monsanto announced that they signed a definitive merger agreement under which Bayer will acquire Monsanto for $128 US per share in an all-cash transaction.
"We are pleased to announce the combination of our two great organizations. This represents a major step forward for our Crop Science business and reinforces Bayer's leadership position as a global innovation driven Life Science company with leadership positions in its core segments, delivering substantial value to shareholders, our customers, employees and society at large," said Werner Baumann, CEO of Bayer AG.
"Today's announcement is a testament to everything we've achieved and the value that we have created for our stakeholders at Monsanto. We believe that this combination with Bayer represents the most compelling value for our shareowners, with the most certainty through the all-cash consideration," said Hugh Grant, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Monsanto.
Officials believe the combined business will benefit from Monsanto's leadership in Seeds & Traits and Climate Corporation platform along with Bayer's broad Crop Protection product line.
The deal also combines both R&D technology platforms boosting the R&D budget to roughly 2.5-billion EUR.
"The agriculture industry is at the heart of one of the greatest challenges of our time: how to feed an additional 3-billion people in the world by 2050 in an environmentally sustainable way. It has been both companies' belief that this challenge requires a new approach that more systematically integrates expertise across Seeds, Traits and Crop Protection including Biologicals with a deep commitment to innovation and sustainable agriculture practices," said Liam Condon, member of the Board of Management of Bayer AG and head of the Crop Science Division.
The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions, including Monsanto shareholder approval of the merger agreement and receipt of required regulatory approvals. Closing is expected by the end of 2017.
