Bayer chairman defends ‘slow to react’ accusations

Bayer’s chairman has defended accusations that his company was slow to act when Merck KGaA began buying up shares in Schering AG in a move that could potentially have scuppered the Bayer-Schering AG merger.

Critics have said that Bayer was slow to respond to Merck KGaA’s share purchases and should have done more to buy more Schering shares outside of the offer to prevent Merck KGaA profiting and possibly gaining a crucial say in the takeover.

However, Werner Wenning, the Bayer management board chairman, said that Bayer had to wait for the approval of the US Securities and Exchange Commission before buying more shares, whereas Merck KGaA had no such limitations and was free to purchase shares in Schering as it wanted.

Mr Wenning remarked: “While we were obligated to proceed according to a detailed set of rules, Merck was able to operate more or less freely in competition with us. I am convinced that the law needs amending in this respect.”

Furthermore, Mr Wenning said that no deal had been struck with Merck to cooperate on future projects, despite the latter’s assertion that both parties would “consider the possibility” of expanding joint activities. He is quoted by the Financial Times as saying: “There is no agreement or side-agreement.”

The new Bayer Schering Pharma company will be headquartered in Berlin.

Dr Hubertus Erlen, the Schering AG executive board chairman, said that although his “dream” of an independent Schering had come to an end, Bayer Schering had become his “new dream” of a powerful and global pharmaceutical company.

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