US: FTC holds closed meeting to talk Walgreens/Rite Aid merger

The Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) two sitting members plan to hold a closed-door meeting on June 29 as the agency intensifies its focus on Walgreens Boots Alliance’s bid for Rite Aid, the commission announced Monday.

The commission has until July 7 to either clear or challenge the companies’ deal, which was announced in October 2015. It is valued around US$7 billion, according to Bloomberg, down from around US$9.4 billion when the deal was announced.

The content of the meeting isn’t officially known; FTC spokeswoman Betsy Lordan said the agency doesn’t comment on the content of closed-door meetings. The FTC is required by law to announce meetings between a quorum of commissioners.

Although the subject matter of the meeting is private, there is speculation that the commissioners must decide how to resolve their review of Walgreens and Rite Aid. The transaction would combine the No. 2 and No. 3 pharmacy chains in the US. The companies have been struggling for over a year to resolve competition concerns at the FTC.

The July 7 deadline for a decision was triggered on May 8, when the companies “certified compliance” with FTC investigatory demands, which set off a 30-day clock for the commissioners to action or allow the deal to go through with no conditions. In this case, the parties agreed to a 60-day deadline.

If the FTC takes no action by that date, the deal would go through.

Full Content: Bloomberg

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