The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), led by Andrew Tyrie, chose to double down on its criticisms of the Sainsbury’s/Asda deal. It said no remedy could fix the damage to competition the 7.3 billion-pound ($9.4 billion) merger would bring - a departure from prior reviews where offers from companies were typically accepted.
Ioannis Kokkoris, a law professor at Queen Mary University of London said that in an in-depth probe, the CMA’s top officials have no formal role and the influence of a chairman on a specific merger review would be solely around the edges. “I would expect a chairman to play a role setting the strategy or framework," he said.
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