According to the Sunday reports by the New York Times and Wall Street Journal, Pfizer's finalized deal with Wyeth is likely to be announced on Monday, before the markets open. Pfizer was reportedly making rushed attempts on Sunday, to secure financing for its $68 billion acquisition of Wyeth.

The papers reported that in accordance with the terms of the deal, Pfizer - the world's largest drug maker - would pay $50.19 a share, a 29% premium over where the shares closed on Thursday, for Wyeth. It is expected to seek a package of nearly $25 billion in bank financing. The company will pay nearly two-thirds of the total acquisition amount in cash and the remaining one-third in stock.

The prospective mega-merger of Pfizer and Wyeth comes at time when the pharmaceutical industry around the globe is in the clutches of waning product development and high fixed costs.

Wyeth CEO Bernard J. Pousso and his management team would likely not continue after the takeover, implying that the control of Wyeth would firmly be in the hands of Pfizer CEO since 2006 - Jeffrey B. Kindler.

For the pharmaceuticals giant, Pfizer - the maker of Viagra and Lipitor - the acquisition effort represents a high-stakes gambit, more so as it cannot boast of a spotless track record in making large acquisitions. This would be the largest acquisition in the drug industry since 2000, after Pfizer's $93.4 billion buyout of Warner-Lambert Co.