Debevoise & Plimpton LLP is acting as independent advisor to the Board of Directors of Monsanto Co. in its $66 billion sale to Bayer AG. Monsanto’s Board of Directors, Bayer’s Board of Management and Bayer’s Supervisory Board have unanimously approved the agreement. Based on Monsanto’s closing share price on May 9, 2016, the day before Bayer’s first written proposal to Monsanto, the offer of $128 per share in an all-cash transaction represents a premium of 44 percent to that price.
As Bayer and Monsanto described in their press release announcing the deal, “This transaction brings together two different, but highly complementary businesses. 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 across a comprehensive range of indications and crops in all key geographies. As a result, growers will benefit from a broad set of solutions to meet their current and future needs, including enhanced solutions in seeds and traits, digital agriculture, and crop protection.”
The Debevoise team is led by partner Mark P. Goodman and includes partner Jeffrey J. Rosen, counsel Elliot Greenfield and associate Nathan S. Richards.
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