London - Bayer has secured about $63bn in financing from five banks for its proposed acquisition of Monsanto, according to people familiar with the matter, a deal that would make it the world’s biggest supplier of farm chemicals and seeds.
The German company has selected Bank of America, Credit Suisse Group, Goldman Sachs Group, HSBC Holdings and JPMorgan Chase to each provide about $12.5bn in short-term loans, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private.
The bridge loan includes an option to be increased should Bayer decide to bump its current offer of $122 a share, the people said. Monsanto has said the bid is too low.