REPORT: Monsanto made a $45 billion offer to buy its Swiss rival
Monsanto, best known for its patented genetically modified seed products and pesticides, has apparently submitted a $45 billion bid for Switzerland-based Syngenta, a company that produces crop chemicals.
Bloomberg cites people familiar with the deal who say Monsanto offered the equivalent of about $488 per share for the company (450 Swiss francs) which, at the time of this writing, was a roughly 35% premium over the company's last closing price.
It's not the first time the Missouri-based Monsanto made a move for Syngenta. Earlier this week, the St. Louis Business Journal reported the company had launched a failed takeover attempt last year.
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) has urged Monsanto to rethink any plans it may have to merge with Syngenta, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, reports. The paper cited a letter Durbin sent to Monsanto CEO Hugh Grant, in which Durbin said Monsanto's "commitment to America would be good not only for the country, but also for Monsanto Company's bottom line."
Durbin's letter was apparently prompted by worries that a Monsanto-Syngenta merger could open the door for Monsanto to move its headquarters out of the US, a strategy not uncommon for large companies seeking lower corporate taxes.