The Zug-based group Sika announced on 21 October 2026 an agreement to acquire the adhesives division of the Japanese chemicals company Resonac. The business mainly serves customers in the automotive industry in Asia. The price has not been disclosed and completion is expected by mid-2027.
What is Sika buying from Resonac?
Sika is taking over a business that develops, produces and sells adhesive technologies, mainly for the automotive sector. According to Sika's press release, the division holds a leading position in bonding for vehicle interiors.
The scope is Asian. The division has sales teams and production sites in Japan, China and Taiwan. Three production sites will thus join the group's network, according to a report by the AWP news agency.
Sika puts forward three arguments:
- stronger access to the major suppliers of Japanese carmakers, which Sika wants to serve worldwide;
- an integrated production network for the Asia-Pacific region, with cost synergies described as significant;
- in Taiwan, a base for new segments, including solutions for batteries.
Price and revenue: what Sika does not disclose
Neither the transaction amount nor the division's revenue appears in the announcements. Nor does the press release give any headcount. It is therefore impossible, at this stage, to gauge the weight of the deal within a group that generated sales of CHF 11.2 billion in 2025.
The only known milestone is completion, expected by mid-2027. The gap of more than six months between the agreement and closing is not explained in the sources.
Adhesives, the common thread of Sika's acquisitions in 2026
The acquisition is part of a series of deals announced since February 2026, several of which concern adhesives. On 1 October 2026, Sika had in fact gathered investors at its largest adhesives plant, in Düdingen (Guin), to present its growth strategy centred on this segment.
| Date | Deal | Country | Business | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 February 2026 | Akkim | Turkey | Adhesives and sealants | Acquisition completed on 3 September 2026 |
| First quarter of 2026 | Finja | Sweden | Not specified in the sources | Acquisition completed |
| 26 March 2026 | MESH AG | Switzerland | Robot-assisted reinforcement manufacturing | Strategic stake, CHF 2.9 million funding round |
| 9 October 2026 | Azpects | United Kingdom | Polymeric sands for landscaping | Acquisition concluded |
| 21 October 2026 | Resonac's adhesives division | Japan, China, Taiwan | Automotive adhesives | Agreement signed, completion expected mid-2027 |
On 9 October 2026, Sika had also taken over the British company Azpects. Acquisitions are already contributing to growth: in the first half of 2026, they accounted for 1.1 points of the 4.0% increase in sales in local currencies, compared with 2.9% organic growth.
In August 2026, Sika also placed its first hybrid bond of EUR 1 billion, in two tranches of EUR 500 million.
Asia and the automotive sector in Sika's strategy
With Resonac, Sika is above all strengthening its industrial outlets. The construction chemicals specialist gains customers in the Asian automotive industry and a technology portfolio considered complementary to its own.
Asia remains a stated area of expansion. In April 2026, the group opened a subsidiary in Kyrgyzstan, bringing its network to 103 national subsidiaries. "This acquisition will strengthen our adhesives business in Asia," says Philippe Jost, Sika's Regional Manager Asia-Pacific, in the press release.
What the acquisition changes for the Zug-based group
The impact on the accounts has yet to be quantified, for lack of data on the division. The framework, however, is known. As of 28 July 2026, Sika was targeting sales growth of 3% to 6% in local currencies for the year and an EBITDA margin (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) of 19.0% to 19.5%.
These targets can be read in two ways. The growth range was raised compared with April 2026, when it was set at 1% to 4%. The margin range, on the other hand, was lowered: it then stood at 19.5% to 20.0%. In the first half of 2026, the EBITDA margin reached 19.0%, compared with 18.4% for 2025 as a whole.
Sika announces cost synergies with Resonac, without quantifying them. They come as its Fast Forward savings programme is set to deliver CHF 80 million in savings in 2026. Sika expects it to make an additional EBITDA contribution of CHF 150 to 200 million by 2028: this is a target, not a result.
What we don't know yet
- The price paid to Resonac and the chosen financing method.
- The revenue, profitability and headcount of the acquired division.
- The share that industrial adhesives will represent in Sika's sales after integration.
- The approvals required before closing: neither the press release nor the news report mentions any review by competition authorities.
- Any possible impact on sites and jobs in Switzerland, which the announcements do not mention.
