At the end of January, the two companies signed a non-binding agreement for Hikma to acquire majority shareholder‘s 91.2 percent stake in its Egypt and Tunisia units
Despite starting the year with a potential bidding war, Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Egypt have decided to end discussions for the potential takeover bid submitted in January.
At the end of January, the two companies signed a non-binding agreement for Hikma to acquire majority shareholder Glaxo Limited Group ‘s 91.2 percent stake in its Egypt and Tunisia units.
In two separate statements, Hikma and GSK announced the decision to end discussions for a Mandatory Tender Offer process.
GSK Egypt’s statement to the Egyptian Exchange notes that it will now “review strategic options for these businesses”.
Within the last week of January and the first week of February, Glaxo Limited Group received three separate letters of interest on the potential sale of their Egyptian and some Tunisian assets.
Tenth of Ramadan for Pharmaceutical Industries and Diagnostic Reagents (Rameda) S.A.E and Arab Company for Pharmaceutical Industries and Medical Appliances’ (ACDIMA Egypt) also showed interest in the company, but was shut down by GSK.
According to the statement regarding the turndown, the reason was the structure of the potential deal and the great effort and time required for due diligence checks and negotiations on their part, as well as to avoid any negative impact on GlaxoSmithKline and their operations.
