Posted June 11, 2015
Syngenta
has rejected a second takeover bid from Monsanto, which included a $2 billion
breakup fee if the proposed $45 deal failed to meet regulatory muster, according
to an Agri Pulse article available here.
The New York Times also published an article available here
and Wall Street Journal here.
As stated
in Monsanto's letter, their offer “represents the same inadequate price, same
inadequate regulatory undertakings to close, same regulatory risks and same
issues associated with dual headquarters' moves" as in its original offer
in April, Syngenta said in a statement.
"The only change by Monsanto is to add a wholly inadequate reverse
regulatory break fee."
If accepted,
Monsanto would create the world’s largest supplier of crop seeds and chemicals.
They are already the world’s largest seller of seeds and a leader in biotechnology,
while Syngenta is the top seller of pesticides, fungicides and herbicides,
according to The Wall
Street Journal.
Monsanto
intends to rename their company and place its headquarters in the United
Kingdom, according to details of its proposal released on Monday by Syngenta, which
could lower the tax rate of the combined firm.
Syngenta
said Monsanto’s bid undervalued Syngenta’s prospects and underestimated “the
significant execution risks, including regulatory and public scrutiny at multiple
levels in many countries,” according to The New York
Times.
On Monday,
Syngenta said that they did not believe that the regulatory concerns would be
resolved by “a pre-agreed and pre-announced package of horizontal divestitures,
which is Monsanto’s proposed approach.”
Monsanto
has said that it would sell Syngenta’s seed business and other overlapping
businesses.
For more
information on biotechnology, please visit the National Agricultural Law
Center’s website here.
