Freshfields advises Grünenthal on acquisition of testosterone business from Bayer

Global law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (‘Freshfields’) has advised the international pharmaceutical company Grünenthal on the acquisition of the rights and trademarks regarding Nebido from Bayer AG. The purchase price will be up to 500 million Euro.

Nebido is available in more than 80 countries and the only long-acting injectable treatment for testosterone deficiency. The patent protection for the product exists until March 2024 in the EU and until May 2027 in the United States. The product is expected to add about €100 million to Grünenthal’s EBITDA in 2023.

Freshfields is advising Grünenthal on all legal aspects of the transaction, including a financing facility to be provided by an international banking syndicate, and worked closely with Grünenthal’s in-house team led by Sebastian Köhler (General Counsel), Benjamin Kaiser (Head of Legal M&A), Claudia Schmidt (Senior Legal Counsel M&A), Sabine König (Senior Legal Counsel Finance) and Ulrike Albus (Senior Patents & Trademarks Counsel).

The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions, including approval by the relevant competition authorities. Closing is expected to occur by the end of 2022.

The Freshfields team comprised

• Corporate/M&A and Life Sciences Transactions:
  Partners Lars Meyer (Frankfurt/Berlin) and Philipp Dohnke (Hamburg), Principal Associates Ferdinand Dreher (Berlin) and Philipp Lehman (Hamburg), Associates Mirjam Meyer (Frankfurt), Maximilian Zellerhoff (Hamburg) and Marc Schlegel (Frankfurt), Transaction Lawyer Alexandra Buchanan (Berlin)

• Finance:
  Partners Frank Laudenklos and Michael Josenhans, Counsel Alexander Pospisil, Associate Lucas Lengersdorf (all Frankfurt)

• Regulatory/Compliance:
  Partner Michael Ramb (Düsseldorf/Berlin), Counsels Sascha Arnold (Hamburg) and Lukas Pomaroli (Vienna)

• People & Reward:
  Partner Ulrich Sittard (Düsseldorf), Principal Associate Flavia Lang (Hamburg)

• IP/Patents:
  Partners Nina Bayerl (Munich) and Christopher Stothers (London), Senior Associate Paul Abbott (London), Associates Juliana Heer and Philipp Sebulke (both Düsseldorf)

• Tax:
  Partner Christian Ruoff (Hamburg), Principal Associate Björn Junior (Düsseldorf)

• Antitrust:
  Partner Rod Carlton (London), Principal Associate Enrica Schaefer, Associates Riccardo Fadiga (both Brussels) and Lasse Petersen (Berlin)

• Dispute Resolution:
  Partners Timothy Harkness (New York) and Andrew Austin (London), Counsel Scott Eisman (New York), Senior Associate Alexander McGregor (London), Associate David Howard (New York)Freshfields regularly acts for Grünenthal on M&A and financing transactions, including on the acquisition of Swiss biotech company Mestex AG in 2021 and on the reorganisation of Grünenthal’s debt structure totalling around €1.6bn.