Bunge to buy Viterra in $18 billion deal that would create an agricultural powerhouse

Bunge is buying Viterra in a deal valued at approximately $18 billion to great a global agricultural giant.  As part of the transaction, Viterra shareholders will receive about 65.6 million shares of Bunge stock, valued at approximately $6.2 billion and about $2 billion in cash. Bunge will assume $9.8 billion of Viterra debt. The deal will boost Bunge’s grain and softseed handling capacity, while expanding origination capabilities in key regions and crops where Bunge is underrepresented. The deal would create a scale that puts Bunge closer to Archer-Daniels Midland and one of the nation’s largest private companies, Cargill. It will also put it in the crosshairs of anti-trust regulators in the U.S.