Dive Brief:
- Sanofi's planned sale of its generics business in Europe will likely be delayed, according to Bloomberg. Last year, CEO Olivier Brandicourt signaled interest in selling of the Merial animal-health business and the Zentiva generics division, but forging a deal for the generics business appears to have been complex than anticipated.
- Negotiations for a sale of the animal health division have moved more smoothly. Just six weeks after announcing interest in selling, Sanofi entered exclusive talks with Boehringer Ingelheim (BI).
- Sanofi's generics business took in €1.92 last year, with more than half of that revenue coming from emerging markets.
Dive Insight:
Sanofi has given itself a 12-month window to find a resolution for its generics business in the E.U. However, navigating all of the complexities of the generics market has complicated the process of deciding how to structure a potential deal.
Zentiva makes generic Plavix (which was a Sanofi brand-name drug), as well as Aprovel, a hypertension drug. Zentiva is active in 50 different markets, with a significant presence in central and eastern Europe.
Elsewhere, Teva is moving forward on its $40.5 billion acquisition of Allergan's generics portfolio, which will bolster its position as the world's largest generic drugmaker. It recently announced it would divest $1 billion in assets to ally E.U. regulators anti-trust concerns.