- Breaches include the sharing of commercially sensitive information between JD Sports and Footasylum CEOs
- Failure to have proper safeguards in place made breaches ‘almost inevitable’
- CEOs of both firms claimed they could not remember what had been discussed during meetings
It is standard practice for the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to issue an interim order during an in-depth phase 2 merger investigation. These orders prevent companies from integrating further and ensure they continue to compete against one another as they would have before the deal took place. The CMA imposed this type of order on JD Sports and Footasylum in May 2021.
The order prohibited JD Sports and Footasylum from exchanging commercially sensitive information without prior consent, and required the companies to immediately alert the CMA of any chance that this information may have been shared.
Importantly, the order required that JD Sports and Footasylum put in place robust measures to prevent such breaches and ensure compliance with the order. Upon review, the…
