Illumina Inc. is in discussions with European Union authorities to divest Grail, as regulators seek to block the company’s $8 billion acquisition of the cancer-detection startup, Reuters reported.
(Bloomberg) — Illumina Inc. is in discussions with European Union authorities to divest Grail, as regulators seek to block the company’s $8 billion acquisition of the cancer-detection startup, Reuters reported.
EU regulators have opposed the deal between the San Diego-based DNA-sequencing giant and Grail over concerns the tie-up could give Illumina outsize ability to halt competitors from developing their own cancer screening tests.
The negotiations with antitrust authorities come just ahead of a planned EU vote on the merger next week.
“We continue our efforts to demonstrate to the European Commission that Illumina’s merger with Grail is pro-competitive, will save lives, and will reduce health-care costs in the EU and beyond,” an Illumina spokeswoman said.
The deal has faced regulatory headwinds in the US as well. The Federal Trade Commission plans to appeal an administrative judge’s recent decision allowing the deal to go through. If the full commission votes to reverse the ruling, the company could ask a federal court to hear the case.
Grail was spun off from Illumina in 2016 to develop a blood test to detect 50 types of early stages of cancer. Illumina sought to buy back the startup and closed the deal in August 2021 despite the FTC’s case and the EU investigation.
Story Link: Illumina Is in Talks With EU to Divest Grail, Reuters Says
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