AkzoNobel tumbles as Nippon Paint, Sherwin-Williams abandon pursuit

(Sharecast News) - AkzoNobel shares tumbled on Wednesday after Japan's Nippon Paint Holdings and America's The Sherwin-Williams Company ended their pursuit of the Dulux maker.

The companies said in a brief statement: "Nippon Paint Group and Sherwin-Williams today announced that they have decided to end their efforts to jointly acquire AkzoNobel."

The decision came after two offers were rejected by AkzoNobel, which announced last November that it was planning to merge with Axalta Coating Systems to create a $25bn paint company.

The Dutch firm said: "Both AkzoNobel boards unanimously continue to recommend the merger of equals between AkzoNobel and Axalta, taking into account the compelling strategic rationale and benefits as set out in the AkzoNobel and Axalta joint press release of November 18, 2025."

The company said it will provide further updates as appropriate.

AkzoNobel announced last month that it had rejected a €12.5bn takeover proposal from Nippon and Sherwin-Williams because it was not superior to the Axalta deal.

It said at the time: "The boards considered, amongst others and in no particular order, that the indicative offer price did not come close to adequately reflecting the value of AkzoNobel and its long-term prospects, taking into account the benefits of the recommended merger with Axalta."

At 0920 BST, the shares were down 18.5% at €54.14.