Bayer has cleared one hurdle in its proposed $66 billion acquisition of Monsanto, an agrochemical and seed company, with the shareholders of Monsanto approving the deal.

The transaction is still subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of required regulatory approvals. Bayer, with the support of Monsanto, has now submitted a number of filings, including the US Hart-Scott-Rodino Act filing. Closing is expected by the end of 2017.

Bayer came to terms with Monsanto for a proposed acquisition in September 2016. The move is the first-large scale acquisition by Bayer since becoming a pure-play life sciences company with a focus on pharmaceuticals, consumer healthcare, and crop science. with projected 2016 sales in its life-sciences business of approximately EUR 35 billion ($38 billion). Bayer’s focus on life sciences is being led by Werner Baumann, who became chairman of the board of management of Bayer AG on May 1, 2016, succeeding Marijn Dekkers. Bayer took on a new corporate structure in January 2016 with three divisions: pharmaceuticals, consumer health, and crop science, and a separate business unit, animal health. Bayer’s former MaterialScience subgroup, renamed Covestro, became legally and economically independent on September 1, 2015, and Covestro AG was floated on the stock market in October 2015. Bayer currently still owns around 69% of Covestro. 

Source: Bayer