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Merck Extends Timeline On Acceleron Deal, Still Expects Q4 Close

Some Investors Have Voiced Concern About Buyout

 
• By Mandy Jackson

Merck said it is giving the FTC more time to review the acquisition, but the shift also gives the company leeway to convince any reluctant Acceleron shareholders to trade their shares for cash.

Sand running through an hourglass
Time is not running out yet to close Merck's Acceleron acquisition • Source: Alamy

Merck & Co., Inc. is giving the US Federal Trade Commission more time to review its $11.5bn all-cash acquisition of Acceleron Pharma, Inc. in a move that also extends the deadline for Acceleron investors to tender their shares of the company. Merck, whose bid has been described as too low by some Acceleron shareholders, still expects the deal to close during the fourth quarter of 2021.

Merck said late on 29 October that it has withdrawn its Premerger Notification and Report Form under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (the HSR Act) regarding the Acceleron acquisition, first announced at the end of September. The waiting period under the HSR Act to consummate the Merck-Acceleron merger, based on the company’s plan to refile the form on 1 November, will expire on 16 November. The deadline for Acceleron shareholders to tender their shares to Merck has been extended from 10 November to 18 November

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