Takeda Pharmaceutical : weighs sale of Shire's eye care business to cut debt - Bloomberg

(Reuters) - Japan's Takeda Pharmaceutical is considering selling Shire Plc eye care business once it closes its $62 billion (47 billion pounds) purchase of the London-listed drugmaker, as it looks to cut the debt raised to fund the deal, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.

Takeda is weighing the sale of Shire's Xiidra drug which treats dry eye, as well as its Natpara medicine used to control low blood calcium levels, the report said https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-13/takeda-is-said-to-weigh-sale-of-shire-eye-care-drug-to-cut-debt, citing people familiar with the matter.

The sale could help Takeda raise between $4 billion and $5 billion, Bloomberg reported.

Takeda agreed to buy Shire in May, in what would be the largest overseas purchase by a Japanese company.

Neither Takeda nor Shire immediately responded to Reuters' requests for comment.

(Reporting by Sai Sachin Ravikumar)