Zeneca

Zeneca Group PLC
Company type	Public limited company
Industry	Pharmaceutical
Founded	1993
Defunct	1999; 25 years ago
Fate	Merged with Astra AB
Successor	AstraZeneca
Headquarters	London, UK
Products	Pharmaceutical products

Zeneca (officially Zeneca Group PLC) was a British multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It was formed in June 1993 by the demerger of the pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals businesses of Imperial Chemical Industries into a separate company listed on the London Stock Exchange.^[1]

In 1999, Zeneca and the Sweden-based pharmaceutical company Astra AB merged to form AstraZeneca plc.^[2]^[3]

Zeneca's largest therapeutic area was oncology, in which its key products included Casodex, Nolvadex and Zoladex.^[4] Other key products included heart drug Tenormin.^[5]

Name

"Zeneca" was an invented name created by the branding consultancy Interbrand.^[6] Interbrand had been instructed to find a name which began with a letter from either the top or bottom of the alphabet and was phonetically memorable, of no more than three syllables and did not have an offensive meaning in any language.^[6]

History

In December 1994, Zeneca agreed the acquisition of 50% of Salick Health Care, an operator of cancer care centres in the United States, in a transaction which valued Salick at US$440 million.^[7] Zeneca announced the sale of its textile colours business to the German group BASF in May 1996.^[8] Zeneca announced it would purchase the remaining 50% of Salick Health Care that it did not already own on 28 March 28 1997.^[9] In December 1997, Zeneca acquired the US fungicide operations of Ishihara Sangyo Kaisha, along with the international distribution rights to four recently developed fungicides, herbicides and pest control products, for US$500 million.^[10]^[11]

In May 1998, Zeneca announced that Tom McKillop, then the head of its drugs division, would succeed Sir David Barnes as chief executive, with Barnes becoming non-executive chairman of the company.^[12] In November 1998, Zeneca announced that it would sell its Zeneca Specialties division, including its biocides, industrial colours, life science molecules, performance and intermediate chemicals and resins activities.^[13] On 11 December 1998, Zeneca and Astra AB announced a £48 billion merger.^[14] In February 1999, it was reported that Zeneca would sue the US Food and Drug Administration over its decision to allow Gensia Sicor to produce a generic version of its anaesthetic Diprivan.^[15] The merger between Zeneca and Astra AB was completed in April 1999, forming AstraZeneca plc.^[16]

References

^ "Timetable for Zeneca demerger spelled out". The Independent. 26 February 1993. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
^ "Zeneca and Astra merge to form drug giant". BBC News. 9 December 1998. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
^ "Corporate Profile: The arranged marriage". The Independent. 24 February 1999. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
^ "Pound batters drug giant". BBC News. 6 August 1998. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
^ "Zeneca profits up 42% in first year after demerger: Volume and price growth, but conditions remain tough". The Independent. 4 March 1994. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
^ ^a ^b "The name game". The Telegraph. 14 January 2001. Retrieved 25 May 2012.
^ "Zeneca to Extend Its Reach into Cancer Care Services". The New York Times. 23 December 1994. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
^ "Zeneca sells loss-making dye business for pounds 150m". The Independent. 9 May 1996. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
^ "Zeneca to Buy Rest of Salick Health Care". The New York Times. 28 March 1997. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
^ "Zeneca buys pounds 300m fungicide business from Japanese rival". The Independent. 18 December 1997. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
^ "Zeneca Group Buys U.S. Fungicide Business". The New York Times. 18 December 1997. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
^ "Drugs chief appointed new head of Zeneca". The Independent. 23 May 1998. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
^ "Zeneca mulls specialities sale". BBC News. 12 November 1998. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
^ "Has Zeneca chosen wisely?". The Independent. 11 December 1998. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
^ "Zeneca to sue US drug monitor". The Independent. 9 February 1999. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
^ "The Lowdown: McKillop gives his opponents the treatment". The Independent. 21 September 2003. Retrieved 5 July 2011.^{[dead link]}