LONDON/BENTONVILLE, Ark. – Britain’s competition regulator on Thursday blocked Sainsbury’s proposed 7.3 billion pound ($9.4 billion) takeover of Walmart-owned Asda – a huge blow to the supermarket groups who wanted to combine to overtake market leader Tesco.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) ruling is also a major setback for Sainsbury’s Chief Executive Mike Coupe, the architect of the deal and the group’s boss since 2014. For Walmart , the deal was a way to exit Britain, one of the weakest performers in its global portfolio, as it moves to revamp its international operations.
Sainsbury’s Coupe made unwanted headlines when he was caught on camera singing: “We’re in the money” shortly after the deal was announced last April. Analysts said questions will be raised over his future after it failed to win approval.
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