Source: Biovalley November 20, 2015 Merck KGaA, a German pharmaceutical and chemical giant, recently announced that it has successfully completed the US $17 billion cash acquisition of sigma Aldrich, the world's largest chemical reagent producer ）This also marks the end of the super large-scale chemical acquisition in the history, which took 1 year and 2 months in total, after it was finally approved by the European Commission (EC) last week
The acquisition aims to strengthen Merck millipore's experimental consumables business, expand Merck millipore's global coverage and improve its presence in North America and fast-growing Asian markets
With the completion of the acquisition, Merck will have nearly 50000 employees in 72 production sites in 67 countries
To ensure smooth integration, Merck has made corresponding adjustments in the integration planning of new businesses: globally, these new businesses will be operated under the name of Merck; in the United States and Canada, these new businesses will be operated under the name of millipore sigma
The acquisition of simga also marks a milestone of Merck's "transformation journey in 2018", transforming its three major businesses into sustainable growth platforms: healthcare, life sciences and high-performance materials
The two sides reached a final acquisition agreement in September last year
Merck will acquire Sigma with $17 billion in cash, thus becoming a leading company in the global life science industry with a value of $130 billion
Merck will be able to provide a set of attractive mature brands and an efficient supply chain for global life science customers, which can support the supply of up to 300000 kinds of products
In the laboratory & academic business, combined with Merck millipore and Sigma's existing life science business, Merck will provide a wide range of complementary products in laboratory chemicals, biological agents and reagents
In terms of pharmaceuticals and biopharmaceuticals, Sigma will complement Merck millipore's existing products and capabilities
It is worth mentioning that the acquisition of sigma is also the largest acquisition in Merck's history
The biggest deal before was the $13.3 billion acquisition of Serono, Switzerland's largest biotechnology company, in 2007, which created a new giant in the European pharmaceutical industry and positioned it as a giant in the pharmaceutical industry
However, Merck's research and development of new drugs have been repeatedly frustrated in the following years, and it has not launched any heavy-duty products, and now it is in trouble
Then in 2010, Merck spent $6 billion to acquire millipore, a US laboratory equipment and chemicals manufacturer, to accelerate the transformation of the company
Sigma Aldrich is a leading group company of life science and high technology in the world
Its biochemical and organic chemical products and kits are widely used
It has operations in 36 countries and regions
Merck group is mainly committed to innovative pharmaceutical, life science and cutting-edge functional materials technology, with 154 branches in 67 countries and regions around the world
Both have branches or joint ventures in China
About sigma Aldrich: sigma Aldrich is a high-tech multinational company dedicated to the field of life science and chemistry
It is the world's largest chemical / biological reagent manufacturer and supplier, as well as the experimental partner of millions of scientists and technicians around the world
Its biochemical, organic chemical reagents and kits are widely used in genome, proteomic research, biotechnology, pharmaceutical industry, disease diagnosis and chemical production, with more than 120000 products.
