Outside directors could scupper Takeda bid for Shire; report

13 April 2018

If successful, Takeda Pharmaceutical's (TYO: 4502) purchase of Ireland-headquartered rare disease specialist Shire (LSE: SHP) would be the largest-ever acquisition by a Japanese pharma company.

No formal proposal has been made, but in late March Takeda issued a statement saying that it was at a ‘preliminary and exploratory stage’ of weighing up an offer, and that there was no certainty that any bid would be made. Takeda has also said it will decide whether to make a formal offer for Shire by April 25.

However, Takeda’s own board could prove a major obstacle to a massive deal for Irish peer Shire if outside directors judge the financial risks too high, endangering its president Christophe Weber’s plan to revive sluggish earnings with fresh drug candidates, the Nikkei Asian Review reported this morning.

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