Shire Pharmaceuticals has accepted a £32-billion ($54-billion, 40-billion-euro) takeover bid from US giant AbbVie, the two companies said on Friday.
"The boards of AbbVie and Shire are pleased to announce that they have reached agreement on the terms of a recommended combination of Shire with AbbVie," the pair said in a statement, which comes after Shire reversed its opposition to a deal earlier this week.