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US: Filing reveals regulatory hurdles prevented Safeway bidding war

By  |  May 28, 2014

A preliminary proxy filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission late last week revealed new details regarding Albertson’s plans to acquire rival Safeway in a $9 billion.

According to reports, the filing revealed a rival bidder was planning to submit its own competing offer for the supermarket chain, but ultimately backed out due to significant regulatory hurdles. While the name of the potential rival bidder was not confirmed, reports say it is likely Kroger.

The competing bidder notified advisors in March it would not be pursuing a Safeway bid because the costs of divestitures likely to be required by regulators was too great.

Full content: The Street

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