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US: Halliburton faces $3.5B break-up fee after failed merger

By  |  April 7, 2016

Halliburton, blocked by federal regulators from buying rival oil-services company Baker Hughes, is staring at another huge disappointment — a $3.5 billion break-up fee.

That figure amounts to the largest cash break-up fee in history — beating the previous champ, the $3 billion in cash plus $1 billion in spectrum paid by AT&T when it was blocked from buying T-Mobile in 2011, according to Dealogic.

On Wednesday the Department of Justice filed a suit to stop the $35 billion merger.

“The proposed deal between Halliburton and Baker Hughes would eliminate vital competition, skew energy markets and harm American consumers,” said federal Attorney General Loretta Lynch.

Halliburton and Baker Hughes, in a joint statement, said they intend to “vigorously contest” the lawsuit.

Full content: NYPost

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