Earlier this morning, we detailed the multi-tranche debt issuances being deployed by four of the most powerful investment banks on the planet — to help Merck set up the balance sheet proportions for the Terns acquitision — a modest $6.7 billion (by comparison to the ~$28 billion in 2022 Mr. Ellison needed to buy Cerner’s EHR businesses).

It always seems to be the same players — at the top of high finance, for investment grade borrowers. Fascinating:

…The initial $28.3 billion purchase of Cerner was primarily financed through a $15.7 billion bridge loan, which was later refinanced through term loans and a multi-part corporate bond sale.

The leading US banks involved in managing this multi-billion dollar debt and bond issuance included: JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup Inc., Bank of America Corp., and Goldman Sachs Group Inc….

Now you know. Onward — but I suspect Merck’s Terns acquisition will generate a better return over the long haul, than Mr. Ellison’s Cerner buy.

नमस्ते