Aug 2 (Reuters) – UK drugmaker AstraZeneca has been exploring a deal to combine with U.S. rival Bristol Myers Squibb, the Financial Times reported on Sunday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The deal could create one of the world’s biggest pharmaceutical groups with a combined value of nearly $400 billion, FT said.
The companies have held talks on a potential tie-up in recent months, the report said, adding that a deal could materialise soon, but could also be delayed or fall apart.
Reuters could not immediately verify the report. AstraZeneca declined to comment, while Bristol Myers did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment outside regular business hours.
The report of the potential deal comes about a dozen years after AstraZeneca fended off a takeover attempt by larger U.S. rival Pfizer.
(Reporting by Devika Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Paul Simao and Bill Berkrot)
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