Albertsons demanding $8M from Kroger over failed merger

The proposed merger between the country’s two largest traditional grocers imploded in late 2024. Albertsons is demanding more than $8 billion in damages from Kroger over the collapse of their planned $24.6 billion mega-merger. 

Kroger said in October 2022 that it intended to acquire Albertsons in a deal that was aimed at benefiting consumers while also allowing it to better compete with such retail powerhouses as Amazon, Walmart and Costco. The deal would have marked the largest merger in the history of the U.S. grocery industry.

The proposed merger between the country’s two largest traditional grocers imploded in late 2024, however, after federal and Washington state courts ruled to block the deal due to antitrust concerns. 

Shortly thereafter, Albertsons filed a legal demand in the Delaware Chancery Court, accusing Kroger of willfully breaching the merger agreement by failing to use its "best efforts" to gain regulatory approval. The trial is scheduled to begin on Oct. 19.

“Kroger’s board and management team explicitly agreed to take any and all actions to get the merger with Albertsons approved by regulators,” an Albertsons spokesperson said. “We will show at trial that Kroger fell far short.” 

Albertsons claims that the merger deal broke apart because Kroger refused to divest assets necessary for antitrust approval, ignored feedback from the FTC and state regulators, and refused “to work with Albertsons in good faith – choosing instead to prioritize its own profit targets.”

“Despite clear feedback from regulators, clear advice from its own counsel and economists, and repeated pleas from Albertsons and the divestiture buyer, C&S Wholesale Grocers, Kroger stuck to its failing lowball strategy right through the litigation that ended the deal,” according to Albertsons’ pretrial brief, which was made public on Oct. 12. https://drugstorenews.com/albertsons-demanding-8m-kroger-over-failed-merger?utm_source=swiftmail&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=DSN_NL_AM&mkt_tok=ODI1LUxTUC01NDUAAAGk3agUgAImMCncWRRKA62-iNIN-3e8Qykj6at-n49OoYcELp64R5WvW4kRIQUiBkQt-PX3_6Cs-vl-KwywCk0X-OHAHclYArlrxlbIjCvFiAj8