BASF's Ag IPO Countdown: Four Banks, 80% Carve-Out, and a Coatings Windfall Funding It All
Published on 09/20/2026 at 06:42 | Editorial boerse-global.de
BASF has locked in the banking muscle for its most consequential corporate move in years. Citi, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan were mandated roughly a week ago as global coordinators for the planned listing of the company's Agricultural Solutions division, a business the Ludwigshafen-based chemicals group intends to have fully IPO-ready by mid-2027.
The appointment lands just ahead of a Capital Markets Day scheduled for 24 November 2026, where management will put the strategic and operational profile of the crop-science unit front and center. For investors, the event doubles as a rare window into what the agricultural business is actually worth once separated from the parent's basic-chemicals operations.
Separation Machinery Already Running
The carve-out is no longer a paper exercise. Around 80% of Agricultural Solutions' worldwide business has been transferred into standalone legal entities, and a new industry-specific ERP system has gone live to support the split processes. The logic behind the unbundling is straightforward: freed from the investment demands of the base chemicals portfolio, the agro unit can fund its own projects and strike partnerships on its own terms.
That division has been beefed up in advance. BASF completed its acquisition of AgBiTech from Paine Schwartz Partners in March, closing a deal that had been signed in January and adding biological pest-control solutions to the portfolio.
Coatings Exit Delivers the Firepower
Funding the whole restructuring is a divestment program that has already produced its headline number. BASF wrapped up the sale of its Coatings business to financial investor Carlyle at the end of June, a transaction built on an enterprise value of EUR 7.7 billion that funneled roughly EUR 5.8 billion in pre-tax proceeds back to the group. In the second quarter alone, the disposal generated a net profit of EUR 3.5 billion.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying BASF?
BASF has not walked away entirely — it retains a 40% stake in the coatings operation, which now trades under the Surventis name. Brussels had cleared the deal earlier after the buyer agreed to concessions in the aviation sealants segment.
The retreat from peripheral activities extends further. On 20 May, BASF signed an agreement to sell its silicate business to PQ Corporation, including the associated assets at the Düsseldorf/Holthausen site, with completion expected in the second half of 2026.
Growth Capital Flows East
While shedding legacy operations, BASF is pouring money into new capacity. The group inaugurated its freshly built Verbund site in Zhanjiang, southern China, on 26 March — a project finished on schedule at an investment volume of about EUR 8.7 billion. More than 2,000 employees there serve customers in transport, electronics and consumer goods.
Technology licensing is another lever. Cheniere Energy started up a BASF natural gas liquefaction technology at its Corpus Christi, Texas, facility on 9 September, a partnership aimed at cementing the group's presence in specialized industrial applications.
Board Continuity and a Raised Outlook
On the personnel front, the supervisory board extended the contracts of executive board members Dr. Katja Scharpwinkel and Anup Kothari through the 2030 annual shareholders' meeting, a move designed to keep the transformation on a steady course.
Earnings momentum has followed. Management lifted its full-year guidance more than a month ago, targeting EBITDA before special items of between EUR 6.9 billion and EUR 7.7 billion — a range that signals the core business can carry the cost of the ongoing separations. Shareholders have been along for the ride: BASF stock closed Friday's session at EUR 51.53, a gain of 16% since the start of the year.
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