Background: Mayne Pharma Group is an ASX-listed pharmaceutical company selling everything from birth control to menopause and dermatology products across Australia and the US.

What happened: In February, US-based Cosette made a $672 million takeover bid for Mayne - a 37% premium to its pre-offer price. Shortly after, Cosette tried to back-out of its offer due to “material adverse changes” to Mayne's business. Now, Cosette has lost the court case after the judge ruled that Cosette can’t walk away from the $672 million deal.

What else: Mayne’s shares soared 14% after the decision, but there’s still one last hurdle before the deal officially closes: approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board.

What's the key learning?

💡The Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) is Australia’s gatekeeper for overseas takeovers. It reviews major foreign bids to ensure they’re in the “national interest.”

💡That “national interest” test includes factors like national security, competition, tax, and employment, especially for deals involving critical sectors like defence, energy, and healthcare.

💡FIRB has blocked deals before, like when then-Treasurer Scott Morrison stopped a $10 billion sale of Ausgrid to Chinese investors in 2016. So Cosette might be hoping history repeats itself to escape its Mayne Pharma deal.