Albertsons calls off merger and sues Kroger
CNN
Grocery chain Albertsons called off its $25 billion blockbuster merger with Kroger Wednesday after a federal judge halted the deal.
Grocery chain Albertsons called off its $25 billion merger with Kroger, ending the largest proposed merger in US supermarket history. “We have made the difficult decision to terminate the merger agreement,” Albertsons CEO Vivek Sankaran said in a statement Wednesday. The merger, announced in 2022, sought to combine the fifth and tenth largest retailers in the country. The companies own dozens of grocery chains, including Safeway, Vons, Harris Teeter and Fred Meyer. Albertsons also sued Kroger for breach of its contract agreement, alleging Kroger caused the merger to be blocked. Albertsons said that Kroger failed to exercise its “best efforts” and to take “any and all actions” to secure regulatory approval of the merger. Kroger did not immediately comment on termination of the deal or the suit. The breakdown came a day after federal judge Adrienne Nelson in Oregon halted the deal, saying it would hurt competition.
A federal judge in Oregon blocked Kroger’s proposed $25 billion tie-up with Albertsons, ruling that the largest merger in US supermarket history would limit competition and harm consumers.
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