Shire suitor Takeda shareholder group sends letter requesting clarification on pending deal- report (translated)
03 OCT 2018
A Takeda Pharmaceutical [TYO:4502] shareholders group has sent a letter to President Christophe Weber seeking more detailed clarification on the pending USD 62bn deal to acquire Ireland-based Shire [LON:SHP], the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported.
Without providing a source, the Japanese-language report cited Takeda as acknowledging it has received the letter from the roughly 130-member shareholder group, which includes former executives of Takeda. Collectively, the group holds around a 1% stake in Takeda, the report said.
In addition to requesting more detailed information on the deal, the letter calls for Takeda to publicize the minutes from board of director meetings, as well as statements by board members, in relation to the Shire deal, the report said.
At Takeda’s general shareholders meeting in June, the group proposed that any deal in excess of JPY 1trn (USD 8.7bn) require shareholder approval, but the proposal was defeated with support from less than 10% of shareholders, the report said.
The shareholders group is requesting that prior to the extraordinary shareholders meeting Takeda explain in detail the basis and reasoning behind the acquisition of Shire, the report said. Although Takeda is not legally bound to reply, the shareholder group is seeking a response to the letter by the end of October, the report said.