Bayer CEO Werner Baumann said he is confident the German seed and chemical company’s $66 billion acquisition of Creve Couer-based seed company Monsanto will close before the end of June, even as Bayer considers the sale of more businesses to facilitate the deal.
Bayer is expected to win conditional approval of the deal ahead from the European Commission, Reuters reported Wednesday. The U.S. Department of Justice is also expected to decide on the tie-up soon.
Bayer, which has already pledged to sell some seed and herbicide assets to BASF to appease anti-trust regulators, expressed confidence it can win approval for the deal by selling properties and making licensing deals.
“We see ourselves on a good path for the regulatory approvals that are still outstanding,’’ Baumann told Bloomberg. “In Europe, as far as the process goes, we are further along than in the USA, but in the USA we will certainly also make progress in the coming weeks.’’