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Late billionaire Merckle agreed to sell Ratiopharm

German billionaire Adolf Merckle sealed the breakup of his industrial empire before committing suicide on Monday – agreeing to the sale of Germany’s biggest generic drugmaker Ratiopharm.

Published: 7 January 2009 16:08 CET

Late billionaire Merckle agreed to sell Ratiopharm

Photo: DPA

The maker of generic medication will be sold off as part of a restructuring deal to pay off bad investments in carmaker Volkswagen and the impact of global financial crisis, Merckle’s investment vehicle VEM said on Wednesday.

“To create a sustainable financial structure for the group, the Merckle family and banks reached an agreement to sell the generics maker,” VEM said said in a statement.

Merckle, one of Germany’s richest men, brought his corporate empire to the brink of ruin late last year as he short-sold shares of VW just as Porsche announced it held far more of the carmaker than was believed. The panic sparked by Porsche’s announcement made VW temporarily one of the world’s most expensive companies and cost Merckle hundreds of millions of euros.

The industrialist then began negotiations with as many as 30 banks on a rescue plan that includes a €400 million bridge loan to keep his companies solvent. In addition to Ratiopharm, Merckle’s family owns drug distributor Phoenix Pharmahandel and nearly 90 percent of HeidelbergCement.

Ratiopharm is Germany’s biggest and most well-known generic drugmaker and has been valued at as much as €6 billion. The company had sales of €1.8 billion in 2007 and employs 5,400 worldwide. It was a popular target of speculation several years ago during a round of consolidation among Europe’s generic drugmakers.

Merckle committed suicide by stepping in front of a train near his home outside of Ulm on Monday. According to Forbes magazine, he had a total net worth last March of $9.2 billion (€6.9 billion).

“The plight of his firms caused by the financial crisis, the uncertainties of recent weeks as well as the powerlessness of not being able to do anything, broke this passionate family businessman,” the Merckle family said in a statement released on Monday.

Which Bavaria-based companies regularly hire English speakers?

Munich ranks third in German cities with the highest total GDP, behind Berlin and Hamburg, but in terms of GDP per capita, it’s higher than both of them.

It also consistently ranks high, often highest, in terms of average household income.

As of 2023, nine of the 40 companies listed on DAX, Germany’s stock index, were based in Bavaria. Seven of those are based specifically in Munich.

While Frankfurt is commonly known to be Germany’s business capital, Munich can claim the title of Germany’s insurance capital, which is saying something, as Germany is home to some of the largest insurance firms in the world, like Allianz.

Beyond the state’s capital city, a number of international companies are based elsewhere in Bavaria, particularly in the Franken region, near Nuremberg.

Which companies actively hire English speakers?

Bavaria, and Munich in particular, is home to a number of companies at the forefront of international business. But the state is known for its traditional, sometimes conservative, culture, which affects its business culture as well.

Whereas companies embracing English as their primary business language are easy to find in Berlin, the practice is less common in the south. That said, there are some notable exceptions.

Sportswear giants, Adidas and Puma, both have their headquarters near Nuremberg in Herzogenaurach, and regularly recruit English speaking international talent.

“As an international company, our teams reflect the rich diversity of our consumers and communities,” Jon Greenhalgh, Senior Manager Media Relations for Adidas told The Local. “Fostering a culture of inclusion where we value and leverage differences, ensures that we can authentically engage with our employees and truly connect with our consumers.”

He added that around 40 per cent of Adidas’ Germany-based employees are foreign nationals, from over 100 different countries.

Siemens and BMW rank among Bavaria’s top employers, and are also known to hire their fair share of foreigners.

“In Germany, we recently had around 2,000 open positions,” Konstanze Somborn told The Local on behalf of Siemens AG.

He added that Siemens operates in 190 countries. “That is why we value international teams very much…English as a common language is very usual.”

READ ALSO: ‘Which German companies want to hire foreigners?’

Similarly, BMW hires workers from a variety of backgrounds.

“Every year, we hire lots of internationals and welcome them to the BMW Group,” Dr. Hans-Peter Ketterl, a press spokesman for BMW Group told The Local.

But not all of these positions are available to non-German speakers.

Ketterl added that BMW’s working language is German in the country, even though, “English is an indispensable entry requirement as the second corporate language in many areas of the company.”

Check job boards and follow best practices

If it’s your first time applying for jobs in Germany, make sure to change your resume to the German format, even for English positions.

While Germany is home to its own job boards, like Xing, LinkedIn is probably the best place to start. In addition to searching for positions based in your preferred location, you can check relevant groups, like Munich Startups, to broaden your horizons.

The English Jobs in Germany website is also a good resource to start with.

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