The clearance brings Merck (Darmstadt, Germany) one step closer to one of the largest transactions in its Life Science business in recent years. The deal would add Bio-Techne’s portfolio of proteins, antibodies, analytical platforms and spatial biology technologies to Merck’s existing research and bioprocessing capabilities.
Strategically, the acquisition would move Merck further toward integrated life science workflows – from early-stage research and drug discovery through development and manufacturing – while strengthening its position in fast-growing areas such as multi-omics, spatial biology, precision diagnostics and cell and gene therapy.
What is the background?
The Bundeskartellamt concluded that the two companies’ activities are largely complementary and that their overlaps do not raise significant competition concerns. These include multiplex instruments, mid-plex analysis, antibodies and small molecules.
“Merck and Bio-Techne’s offerings complement each other in many areas and only partially compete with one another,” said Andreas Mundt, president of the Bundeskartellamt. Customers would continue to have access to several strong suppliers, including Thermo Fisher Scientific, DiaSorin, Danaher and Bio-Rad.
The German authority therefore cleared the transaction in the first phase of merger control. The deal still requires regulatory clearance in several other jurisdictions, as well as approval by Bio-Techne shareholders and other customary closing conditions.
Merck announced the acquisition in June, offering $73 per Bio-Techne share in cash. The transaction values Bio-Techne at approximately $11.3 billion (€9.9 billion), including debt, and represented a 36% premium to the company’s one-month volume-weighted average share price.
What is Merck buying?
Bio-Techne brings more than 3,000 employees, more than $1.2 billion in fiscal 2025 revenue and a broad portfolio of research and analytical technologies.
Among its assets are ProteinSimple, which develops automated protein detection and analysis systems, and RNAscope, a technology for in situ hybridisation that supports spatial biology and molecular diagnostics. Bio-Techne is also active in recombinant proteins, cytokines, growth factors, antibodies and immunoassay kits, as well as materials and technologies for cell and gene therapy developers.
The combination therefore reaches beyond a conventional laboratory-supplies deal. Bio-Techne’s technologies sit close to the biological research itself, while Merck adds global distribution, manufacturing capabilities and a large bioprocessing and life sciences infrastructure.
The big picture
The acquisition fits a broader pattern in the life sciences tools market: scale is increasingly being built around integrated platforms rather than individual products.
Merck has pursued this strategy for more than a decade. Its acquisition of Millipore in 2010 and, more significantly, Sigma-Aldrich in 2015 transformed its Life Science business into a global supplier spanning laboratory research and biopharmaceutical production. The company subsequently added Versum Materials and other assets, while its 2025 acquisition of SpringWorks Therapeutics strengthened its pharma business.
Bio-Techne adds another layer to this ecosystem. Its technologies can generate the biological data and reagents needed at the front end of research, while Merck has increasingly positioned itself across the workflows that follow.
That makes the transaction strategically relevant beyond its headline price: Merck is not simply adding another life sciences supplier; it is expanding the biological infrastructure it can offer to biotech and pharma customers from discovery to manufacturing.
What’s next?
Merck expects the transaction to strengthen revenue growth immediately after closing and improve its adjusted EBITDA margin. It forecasts around €140 million in annual cost synergies, fully realized by the third year after closing, and expects a positive contribution to adjusted EPS no later than that point.
The deal is expected to close by the end of 2026 or early 2027, subject to the remaining regulatory approvals, Bio-Techne shareholder approval and customary closing conditions.
The German clearance is therefore an important milestone – but not yet the final green light for the global transaction.
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