Ciba Acquisition Now Perfect: BASF Starts Integration Process   

By Tanya Tian   

BASF has successfully completed its acquisition of Ciba Holding AG, which closed on April 10 with the payment of the offer price to Ciba shareholders. At the same time, the tendered shares were transferred to BASF. The company now holds 95.8% of Ciba.
   BASF intends to fully integrate Ciba into the BASF Group. The integration process will start with a "Discovery Phase." During this phase, joint teams consisting of BASF and Ciba employees will analyze the acquired businesses in depth. The goal of the analysis is to define a market-oriented positioning for the combined businesses as well as the optimal organizational structure. The actual integration process will start in July 2009 on the basis of these results.