(Yicai Global) March 8 -- Grifols, one of the world's largest producers of blood plasma-derived products, has struck a USD1.9 billion deal with RAAS Blood Products to become the Chinese firm's second-largest shareholder.

The agreement provides the Grifols with the opportunity to expand its presence in China, home to the fastest-growing demand for hemoderivatives globally, the Barcelona-based firm said in a statement.

Grifols will take a 26 percent stake in the Shanghai-based blood plasma-derived product maker through the non-cash deal. Grifols will hand over a 45 percent stake in its US unit Grifols Diagnostic Solutions, as well as 40 percent of its voting rights. The stake is worth USD1.9 billion based on GDS' valuation of USD4.3 billion.

Shares in RAAS [SHE:002252] hit the 10 percent maximum single-day gain allowed on China's A-share market this morning to close at CNY10.55 (USD1.57).

RAAS had originally planned to buy all shares in GDS as well another firm Tiancheng Germany Pharmaceutical Holdings for a combined CNY39.1 billion (USD5.8 billion), according to a statement last November. The 100 percent stakes in GDS and Tiancheng were valued at USD5 billion and EUR589 million (USD659 million) at the time, respectively.

The previous deals feature multiple undetermined factors, Shanghai RAAS said in a statement regarding the transactions. The firm's share price slumped significantly after resuming the plan, providing a stumbling block.

Tiancheng's holding company Biotest has many shareholders, which made coordination difficult. RAAS scaled back the plan to only buy a 45 percent stake in GDS to complete reorganization as soon as possible and protect shareholders interests

Editor: William Clegg