Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas Advises Monsanto on Securing CCI Approval Relating to its USD 63 Billion Global Acquisition by Bayer AG

Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co. (SAM & Co.) advised Monsanto Company on securing Competition Commission of India (CCI) approval for the USD 63 billion global acquisition of Monsanto by Bayer AG. The agreement relating to the transaction was entered into on 14 September, 2016. Post the due approvals, Monsanto shall become a subsidiary of Bayer.

The Competition Law Practice of Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas advised on the matter. The Competition Law team provided strategic advice to Monsanto and assisted Bayer in filing the Form II notification (long form notification) with the CCI, responding to information requests.

Given the importance of the agricultural sector in India and the CCI's focus on the same, the Firm assisted Monsanto in addressing concerns of the CCI through multiple discussions, and in offering modification to the transaction by way of divestitures and behavioural remedies required by the CCI.

• The Competition Law practice team was led by Mr. Naval Chopra, Partner; and Ms. Aparna Mehra, Partner; and included Mr. Rohan Arora, Principal Consultant; Mr. Saattvic, Senior Economist; Mr. Aman Sethi, Senior Associate; Ms. Nitika Dwivedi, Senior Associate; Mr. Geet Sawhney, Associate; Ms. Gayatri Pradhan, Associate.

• The SAM Competition Team was assisted by its General Corporate Team who are also involved in the divestment process. The team was led by Ms. Akila Agarwal, Partner; and Mr. Sourav Kanti Biswas, Partner; and included Ms. Megha Bhargawa, Principal Associate; Ms. Ishita Khandelwal, Senior Associate.

The transaction required antitrust approval from competition authorities in several jurisdictions including the European Union, United States of America, Brazil, China, Russia, and  South Africa.

Other advisors to the transaction were Arnold & Porter (International counsel for Monsanto); Sullivan & Cromwell LLP (International counsel for Bayer AG); and Luthra & Luthra Law Offices (India counsel for Bayer AG).  

About Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co.

Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co. (SAM & Co.), founded on almost a century of legal achievement, is one of India’s leading full-service law firms. The firm’s mission is to enable business by providing solutions as trusted advisers through excellence, responsiveness, innovation and collaboration. SAM & Co. is known globally for its exceptional practices in mergers & acquisitions, private equity, competition law, insolvency & bankruptcy, dispute resolution, capital markets, banking & finance and projects & infrastructure.

The Firm has a pan-India presence and has been at the helm of major headline transactions and litigations in all sectors, besides advising major multinational corporates on their entry into the Indian market and their business strategy. Currently, the Firm has over 520 lawyers, including over 100 Partners, offering legal services through its offices at New Delhi, Mumbai, Gurugram, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Chennai.