By Agence France-Presse IDEC Pharmaceuticals Corp., San Diego, has agreed to buy Biogen Inc. for more than $6.5 billion in stock in a friendly deal aimed at creating a new biotechnology leader, the two firms said June 23. The deal would create Biogen IDEC Inc. with IDEC shareholders owning 50.5% and Biogen shareholders 49.5%, the two companies said in a statement. "Bringing our companies together accelerates both companies' strategic plans and creates a biotechnology leader with the products, pipeline, infrastructure and financial resources to grow faster and create sustainable shareholder value beyond what either company could achieve separately," said Biogen Chairman and CEO James Mullen. Biogen is headquartered in Cambridge, Mass. IDEC is to pay 1.15 of its own shares for each Biogen share. Based on Friday's closing price for IDEC of $38.97 a share, the deal is worth more than $6.5 billion. The acquisition has been unanimously approved by the two companies' boards but must still be cleared by shareholders and regulators. It is expected to be wrapped up by the end of the third quarter or early in the fourth quarter of this year. Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2003
