Shire and Takeda finally agree on £46bn takeover deal on the morning of deadline day

Pharmaceuticals firms Shire and Takeda have finally agreed on a £46bn deal which will see Japan’s Takeda take control of its London-listed rival.

Shire shareholders will grab $30.33 (£22.42) in cash and 0.839 new Takeda shares, unchanged from the company’s final offer. If the deal closes, Shire shareholders will own around half of the combined business.

The firms had been due to conclude the deal in April. Shire conditionally agreed to Takeda’s fifth offer as the deadline approached, but managed to get an extension to today in order to thrash out other terms.

Read more: Shire shares rise as Takeda sweetens the deal with a last ditch pitch

It seems Takeda has finally managed to win Shire over, as the UK-based pharmaceuticals giant today unanimously recommended that its shareholders approve Takeda’s offer.

The companies have agreed that up to three Shire directors will join the board of the newly combined business.

“Over the last 30 years, Shire has become the global leader in treating rare diseases, delivering innovative products that transform patients’ lives,” said Shire’s chairman Susan Kilsby.

“We firmly believe that this combination recognises the strong growth potential of our leading products and innovative pipeline and is in the best interests of our shareholders, our patients and the communities we serve.”

Shire’s shares climbed more than three per cent in early trading.

Tokyo-listed Takeda’s shares, however, climbed almost four per cent to ¥4,638 (£31.50). This is good news for Shire shareholders – since a large proportion of the payment for the deal is in Takeda shares, the value they get depends on Takeda’s share price.

The £46bn headline figure is based on a Takeda share price of ¥4,923, but in reality billions has been wiped off this figure in recent weeks as Takeda’s share price has sunk.

Read more: Shire and Takeda break the deadlock with deal that was worth £46bn – but is now worth billions less