Morrison Foerster, Mori, Hamada & Matsumoto, and Ropes & Gray have advised U.S. investment fund Bain Capital on its planned 510-billion-yen ($3.3 billion) acquisition of Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation from Mitsubishi Chemical Group Corporation.
The acquisition is part of Bain’s aggressive expansion of its Japanese portfolio, as it earmarks $31 billion for the country over the next five years. Last month, Bain added Japanese aircraft interior maker Jamco to its portfolio through a $634 million deal, on which Ropes, MHM and Nishimura & Asahi received mandates.
Additionally, in October last year, Bain acquired Red Baron Group, Japan’s largest used-bike dealer, for $694 million, with Ropes and Anderson Mori & Tomotsune advising the PE giant.
“Tanabe Pharma has been delivering innovative medicines to Japanese patients for centuries, and we are proud to partner with MTPC and support its next phase of growth and evolution,” said Masa Suekane, a partner and head of Japan healthcare, industrials and financial services at Bain Capital Private Equity.
The seller, Mitsubishi Chemical said it had made the sale as it was not in a position to provide the large-scale investment necessary to strengthen Mitsubishi Tanabe's research and development capacity.
Private equity-led buyouts are booming in Japan as companies increasingly carve out non-core businesses, under pressure from Japanese authorities to raise corporate and shareholder value.
The Ropes & Gray team was led in Tokyo by private equity partner Tsuyoshi Imai and finance partner Ben Morris, supported by associates Lucas Adams, Takashi Nakamura and Alex Nakayama. The London team advising on antitrust aspects included litigation & enforcement partner Ruchit Patel and associates Olivia Bennett and Katie Gerasimidis.
The MHM team comprised partners Hajime TanahashI, Rintaro Shinohara and Yusuke Takamiya, and counsel Hiroko Kasama.
The MoFo team was led by Tokyo-based M&A/PE partners Jeremy White and Randy Laxer, and included of counsel Takaki Sato and associates Bryce Gray, Ganesh Vaheisvaran, Ning Ning, Yusaku Narita, Agnes Hannah Petrucione, and Kasumi Matsukura.
