Takeda to win EU approval for €54bn takeover of Shire
JAPANESE drugmaker Takeda Pharmaceutical is set to win conditional EU antitrust approval for its $62bn (€54bn) bid for Dublin-headquartered Shire, the biggest ever overseas acquisition by a Japanese company, two people familiar with the matter said on Friday.
Both companies have operations in Ireland, but are relatively small compared to rivals like Pfizer and MDS’s Irish businesses. Takeda employs around 400 in three Irish units, one plant in Bray, Co Wicklow, and two sites in Dublin.
Shire controversially moved its official headquarters from the UK to Ireland in 2008, helping reduce its tax bill. But its main business is in the US.
Last month, Takeda offered to divest Shire Plc’s pipeline compound SHP647 along with some associated rights after the European Commission voiced concerns about the overlap with its own drug for inflammatory bowel disease called Entyvio.
Entyvio, a treatment for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, is Takeda’s biggest-selling drug. Shire’s shares moved into positive territory in London following the Reuters story, closing up 0.28pc.