Zurich — US healthcare giant Johnson & Johnson (J&J) will buy Swiss biotech company Actelion in a $30bn all-cash deal that includes spinning off Actelion’s research and development pipeline, the companies said on Thursday. The acquisition gives J&J access to the Swiss group’s line-up of high-price, high-margin medicines for rare diseases, helping it diversify its drug portfolio as its biggest product, Remicade for arthritis, faces cheaper competition. The offer to pay $280 per share, following weeks of exclusive talks, was unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies. Actelion has been the subject of takeover speculation for weeks after J&J launched and then halted discussions with the Swiss company. Reuters
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