At the turn of the century, chemical giants spent about $3 billion in two years buying up pharmaceutical fine chemical specialists. This was part of a wider restructuring that added up to $14 billion of M&A activity between 1998–2000 in fine chemicals. Certainly in the last decade there have been three major waves of restructuring:
Pharma giants increasing their market share through mergers while shedding chemical operations.
The emergence of “new”chemical companies such as Avecia, Ciba, Clariant, Degussa, Rhodia and Solutia.
Traditional companies radically restructuring or simply disappearing.
Leading consultants and financial analysts succeeded in convincing these companies that pharmaceutical fine chemicals would be a high growth, high margin, noncyclical sector with synergies with their existing businesses. Quel désastre.
Talking Point
Article
Pharmaceutical Technology Europe, January 2007
The survival of the fittest. Where have great European brands gone?
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