Innovations Through Mergers and Acquisitions in the Pharmaceutical Sector

Pharmaceutical firms have a noteworthy contribution in SDGs (Sustainable development goals). Their unceasing innovation of low-cost medicines and discovery of lifesaving drugs can assist in achieving the SDG 3 (good health and well-being). Having gone through the M&A scenario in the global pharmaceutical industry and the amount disbursed on R&D, the authors tried to find answers to a few important questions to understand whether these activities are in line to achieve global goals i.e. first, does Merger and Acquisition M&A in pharmaceutical sector increase innovations? Second, how can companies fully utilize M&A activities to increase innovation in the pharmaceutical sector? Third, is there any association between R&D expenditures and innovation outcome? We theoretically analyze and consolidate academic research on how M&A activities support innovation in the pharmaceutical industry. The present chapter also tried to unveil the association between R&D expenditures and the firm innovation as measured by the number of patent applications by selected Indian pharmaceutical firms.