Simcere deal

Simcere said its board received a non-binding proposal to go private from Chairman Jinsheng Ren and Assure Ahead Investments Ltd. The parties are proposing to acquire all of the Simcere shares they do not already own for $4.78 per share in cash, or $9.56 per ADS. The deal would value Simcere at about $505.4 million based on about 105.7 million shares outstanding on March 11. The price is a 20% premium to Simcere's close of $7.96 on March 8, before the proposal was disclosed. The company, which has retained Shearman & Sterling LLP as legal counsel, formed a special committee of independent directors to consider the proposal. Ren and Assure, which hold a combined 55.4% stake in Simcere, have retained Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton LLP as legal counsel. ...