Illumina to challenge Brussels over any block on Grail merger
US biotech giant Illumina is set to appeal against a forthcoming decision from regulators in Brussels blocking its $8bn acquisition of cancer-screening start-up Grail, a ruling that would put the EU at odds with a favourable decision in the US.
Illumina plans to take the EU to court on the grounds that the bloc’s regulators have no jurisdiction over a merger that involves two US companies, and in which where the target has no revenues in Europe, two people with direct knowledge of the move said.
An administrative law judge ruled in favour of the deal in the US last week, a blow to the US Federal Trade Commission’s attempt to unwind the deal.
The company will point to the US ruling, which the FTC has appealed against, as evidence that Brussels is making a mistake in opposing the transaction.
Regulators in Brussels are keen to use this merger as an example of the expanding reach of the EU’s power. A court in Luxembourg recently ruled the EU had jurisdiction to scrutinise the deal despite opposition from Illumina. It is very rare for regulators to arrive at opposing views on clearing a merger.
This story originally appeared on: Financial Times - Author:Javier Espinoza
