US deals blocked by regulators or facing intense scrutiny
Updates after Kroger-Albertsons deal blocked
Dec 11 (Reuters) -A U.S. judge blocked the pending $25-billion merger of U.S. grocery chains Kroger KR.N and Albertsons ACI.N on Tuesday, in the latest win for the Federal Trade Commission under President Joe Biden's administration.
Here are other deals that have fallen through, been blocked, or face scrutiny:
DEALS TERMINATED
DEAL | VALUE | CONTEXT |
JetBlue-Spirit Airlines | $3.8 billion | JetBlue Airways JBLU.O and Spirit Airlines SAVE.N scrapped their $3.8-billion merger agreement in March 2024, with the low-cost carriers saying there was no path forward after a U.S. judge blocked the deal in January on anti-competition concerns. |
Tapestry-Capri | $8.5 billion | Tapestry TPR.N abandoned its bid for Michael Kors owner Capri CPRI.N after a judge blocked it following a lawsuit by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), nipping the possible creation of a U.S. luxury giant to compete with European behemoths. |
Avangrid Inc-PNM Resources | $8.3 billion | Iberdrola's U.S. unit Avangrid Inc AGR.N said in January 2024 it had terminated its planned $8.3 billion acquisition of rival PNM Resources PNM.N, because it could not get all the necessary regulatory approvals to close the deal by Dec. 31, 2023. |
DEALS BLOCKED
DEAL | VALUE | CONTEXT |
Kroger-Albertsons | $25 billion | A U.S. district judge in Portland, Oregon, as well as a Washington state court judge in Seattle blocked the pending $25 billion merger between the top two traditional grocery chains, Kroger and Albertsons, leaving the companies to consider their options. |
DEALS UNDER SCRUTINY
DEAL | VALUE | CONTEXT |
UnitedHealth Group-Amedisys Inc | $3.3 billion | The U.S. Department of Justice and three U.S. states filed a lawsuit in November 2024 to block UnitedHealth Group's UNH.N $3.3 billion acquisition of Amedisys Inc AMED.O, citing concerns that the deal would reduce competition in the home health services market. |
Capital One- Discover Financial Services | $35.3 billion | New York Attorney General Letitia James is investigating whether Capital One's COF.N proposed $35.3 billion takeover of Discover Financial Services DFS.N violates the state's antitrust law, the state said in October 2024. |
Nippon Steel-U.S. Steel | $14.9 billion | Nippon Steel's 5401.T $14.9 billion bid for U.S. Steel X.N has faced opposition by both newly elected President Donald Trump and the outgoing Biden administration. A top Nippon Steel executive and U.S. Steel's CEO met with senior U.S. officials in September in an effort to salvage the deal. |
Tempur Sealy International- Mattress Firm | $4 billion | The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said in July 2024 it would sue to block the $4 billion merger between mattress manufacturer Tempur Sealy International Inc TPX.N and retailer Mattress Firm. Tempur Sealy now expects to close the deal later this year or early 2025. |
Reporting by Ananta Agarwal and Juveria Tabassum in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila
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