Shire: Waiver Of OFT Condition For ViroPharma Acquisition

(RTTNews) - Shire plc (SHP.L) (SHPG) said Wednesday it has waived the Office of Fair Trading, or OFT, approval condition to the announced tender offer for all of the outstanding shares of ViroPharma Inc. (VPHM).

As a result of the waiver, the deal is no longer conditional on OFT approval, and Shire expects to complete the tender offer on January 24, 2014. The waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act expired on December 10.

The tender offer is scheduled to expire on January 23, 2014.

In November, ViroPharma agreed to be acquired by Shire for $50 per share in cash, valuing the deal at about $4.2 billion.