M&A Lab
April 07, 2009
Sun Pharma - Taro Pharma Deal Dissection

What kicked off as a friendly outbound acquisition by an Indian company is now being fought as a battle in the court room. This is one battle which has shaken the two top pharma corporates of the world and has taken them through a roller coaster ride. One of India’s leading drug maker Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Limited (“Sun India”) would have expanded its base to include another giant drug making company of Israel i.e. Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Limited (“Taro Israel”) by way of a reverse triangular merger. Strikingly, what was supposed to be the second largest outbound acquisition by an Indian company in the pharma space is now into disputed waters.

Sun India intended to acquire Taro Israel with the vision to increase its portfolio, strengthen its position in USA and get an entry into the European markets. The parties executed a series of agreements to accord their understanding of the merger and also provided for a back-up arrangement to counter the situation if the merger fails.

However, Taro Israel witnessed a financial turnaround converting it from a company in losses to a profit yielding enterprise which as Sun India contends may be because of its injection of suitable amount of funding into Taro Israel by releasing Taro Israel from its debt. This financial turnaround raised the expectations of Taro Israel claiming that Sun India’s offer was unjust and did not reflect the real worth of the company.

It would be interesting to understand the factors attributable to the said behavior of the parties. This M&A Lab dissects the commercial, legal, regulatory and tax aspects with respect to India, Israel, Hungary and U.S.A. For the sake of convenience and better understanding, this M&A Lab is divided into 2 parts – (Part A) Pre termination of Merger Agreements; and (Part B) Post termination of Merger Agreements.


For a detailed analysis of the commercial, legal, regulatory & tax considerations, please click here for the document.


As you would be aware, we have been providing regular information on latest legal developments. M&A Lab is our latest initiative to provide you in depth and knowledge based analysis of latest M&A deals. We will be happy to have your views / comments on our initiative. Please read the disclaimer carefully.


– Abir RoySambhav Ranka & Nishchal Joshipura 
You can direct your queries or comments to Team M&A


Disclaimer

The contents of this hotline should not be construed as legal opinion. View detailed disclaimer.

This Hotline provides general information existing at the time of preparation. The Hotline is intended as a news update and Nishith Desai Associates neither assumes nor accepts any responsibility for any loss arising to any person acting or refraining from acting as a result of any material contained in this Hotline. It is recommended that professional advice be taken based on the specific facts and circumstances. This Hotline does not substitute the need to refer to the original pronouncements.

This is not a Spam mail. You have received this mail because you have either requested for it or someone must have suggested your name. Since India has no anti-spamming law, we refer to the US directive, which states that a mail cannot be considered Spam if it contains the sender's contact information, which this mail does. In case this mail doesn't concern you, please unsubscribe from mailing list.


M&A Lab

April 07, 2009

Sun Pharma - Taro Pharma Deal Dissection

What kicked off as a friendly outbound acquisition by an Indian company is now being fought as a battle in the court room. This is one battle which has shaken the two top pharma corporates of the world and has taken them through a roller coaster ride. One of India’s leading drug maker Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Limited (“Sun India”) would have expanded its base to include another giant drug making company of Israel i.e. Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Limited (“Taro Israel”) by way of a reverse triangular merger. Strikingly, what was supposed to be the second largest outbound acquisition by an Indian company in the pharma space is now into disputed waters.

Sun India intended to acquire Taro Israel with the vision to increase its portfolio, strengthen its position in USA and get an entry into the European markets. The parties executed a series of agreements to accord their understanding of the merger and also provided for a back-up arrangement to counter the situation if the merger fails.

However, Taro Israel witnessed a financial turnaround converting it from a company in losses to a profit yielding enterprise which as Sun India contends may be because of its injection of suitable amount of funding into Taro Israel by releasing Taro Israel from its debt. This financial turnaround raised the expectations of Taro Israel claiming that Sun India’s offer was unjust and did not reflect the real worth of the company.

It would be interesting to understand the factors attributable to the said behavior of the parties. This M&A Lab dissects the commercial, legal, regulatory and tax aspects with respect to India, Israel, Hungary and U.S.A. For the sake of convenience and better understanding, this M&A Lab is divided into 2 parts – (Part A) Pre termination of Merger Agreements; and (Part B) Post termination of Merger Agreements.


For a detailed analysis of the commercial, legal, regulatory & tax considerations, please click here for the document.


As you would be aware, we have been providing regular information on latest legal developments. M&A Lab is our latest initiative to provide you in depth and knowledge based analysis of latest M&A deals. We will be happy to have your views / comments on our initiative. Please read the disclaimer carefully.


– Abir RoySambhav Ranka & Nishchal Joshipura 
You can direct your queries or comments to Team M&A


Disclaimer

The contents of this hotline should not be construed as legal opinion. View detailed disclaimer.

This Hotline provides general information existing at the time of preparation. The Hotline is intended as a news update and Nishith Desai Associates neither assumes nor accepts any responsibility for any loss arising to any person acting or refraining from acting as a result of any material contained in this Hotline. It is recommended that professional advice be taken based on the specific facts and circumstances. This Hotline does not substitute the need to refer to the original pronouncements.

This is not a Spam mail. You have received this mail because you have either requested for it or someone must have suggested your name. Since India has no anti-spamming law, we refer to the US directive, which states that a mail cannot be considered Spam if it contains the sender's contact information, which this mail does. In case this mail doesn't concern you, please unsubscribe from mailing list.