Ratiopharm is a German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 pharmaceutical company

Pharmaceutical company

The pharmaceutical industry develops, produces, and markets drugs licensed for use as medications. Pharmaceutical companies are allowed to deal in generic and/or brand medications and medical devices...

 that is Europe's leading generics

Generic drug

A generic drug is a drug defined as "a drug product that is comparable to brand/reference listed drug product in dosage form, strength, route of administration, quality and performance characteristics, and intended use." It has also been defined as a term referring to any drug marketed under its...

 brand.

Ratiopharm was owned by Adolf Merckle

Adolf Merckle

Adolf Merckle was a businessman, and one of the richest people in Germany.Merckle was born in Dresden, Germany into a wealthy family. Most of his wealth came from inheritance. He developed his Bohemian grandfather's chemical wholesale company into Germany's largest pharmaceutical wholesaler,...

 and makes generic Pharmaceuticals. They are based in Ulm, Germany and products being distributed in over 35 countries worldwide.

On March 18, 2010, Teva

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. , is an international pharmaceutical company headquartered in Petah Tikva, Israel. It specializes in generic and proprietary pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical ingredients...

 announced that it planned to acquire Ratiopharm for US$5 billion. On August 10, 2010, Teva announced that it had completed its acquisition of Ratiopharm.