Takeda to sell Osaka site to soften Shire deal's financial impact

It’s one of the biggest acquisitions the industry has seen at a total value of $63 billion and after weeks of agonising negotiation and rejection, and Takeda is now moving to drum up a strong financial base prior to its merger with Irish drugmaker Shire. The latest news on this front is that the Japanese firm plans to sell off its headquarters in Osaka to raise the funds it needs.

It is thought that the sale of the HQ, known as the Takeda Midosuji Building, and surrounding buildings could generate up to 60 billion yen, or $542 million, for the company. The bidding process is provisionally pencilled in for October this year, and the company hopes to find a buyer for the property before the end of the year.

The intention is to jettison non-core assets that do not contribute to the drug-making operations of the firm and its new acquisition as its finances flag ahead of the completion of the deal. Takeda’s interest-bearing debt is expected to rocket around 400% to four trillion yen following the purchase.

Osaka is the site of the birth of Takeda back in 1781. The company announced that it would be relocating to a recently-completed global HQ in Tokyo back in March, and opened the site this week. According to Chief Executive Christophe Weber, the company fully intends to maintaining the Tokyo HQ as its global centre following the completion of the merger with Shire.

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