The U.K. Competitions and Markets Authority has pushed back the deadline for its final decision on American Express Global Business Travel’s acquisition of CWT to March 9 from the original Jan. 26, the CMA announced Thursday.
The six-week delay comes as the CMA said a final report “will not be possible within the original reference period” due to “special reasons.” For one, the CMA said it needs time to evaluate a survey of more than 1,500 travel managers submitted by Amex GBT and CWT to refute findings of a CMA survey in its preliminary report,which Amex GBT and CWT said was “fundamentally flawed” with a sample size of 90, two-thirds of whom “have not tested the market in the last two years,” according to the travel management companies’ response to the CMA’s preliminary findings. The CMA said it has “allocated resources to understanding and evaluating these submissions and has written to [the TMCs] in order to clarify aspects of the survey methodology.”
In addition, the CMA said it is sending a paper to Amex GBT and CWT “confirming the product market that is the source of the CMA’s investigation,” and the delayed deadline will ensure enough time for a response from the TMCs. The CMA’s preliminary report suggested the merger would “substantially lessen competition” for large global travel management needs, and the definition of that market and who is able to serve them has been a source of contention.
The delayed deadline does not mean the decision will not come until March 9. The CMA said it “aims to complete the inquiry as soon as possible and in advance of this date.”
