Dow Chemical’s planned $15bn takeover of Rohm and Haas, its US rival, was in jeopardy after the group said Monday it lacked funds to close the deal, triggering an immediate lawsuit from its target. Rohm and Haas, a large speciality chemicals producer, asked a Delaware court to enforce the transaction at the original price of $78 per share. In the lawsuit, the company accused Andrew Liveris, Dow’s chief executive, of “improperly” asking the Federal Trade Commission, the US antitrust regulator, to delay its clearance of the deal in order to buy more time. Dow rejected the allegation and said the discussions were “completely consistent” with its duty to gain approval for the deal. The FTC cleared the takeover on Friday, forcing Dow to complete the deal, which also includes $3.7bn of Rohm and Haas’s debt, within two business days.

This entry was posted by Gwen Robinson on Tuesday, January 27th, 2009 at 5:35 and is filed under Capital markets. Tagged with dow chemical, Rohm and Haas. Edit this entry.