The European Commission has stopped the clock on its in-depth investigation into the proposed combination of Aon and Willis Tower Watson (WTW), according to a commission spokesperson. In December 2020, the commission opened the investigation to assess the proposed acquisition on WTW by Aon over concerns that the transaction could significantly reduce competition in those markets. Aon announced its intentions to buy WTW in March 2020 in an all-stock transaction with an implied combined equity value of approximately $80 billion. The deal would see the combination of two of the world’s largest insurance brokers. The commission, who suspended the investigation on 8 February, explains that this procedure in merger investigations is activated if the parties fail to provide, in a timely fashion, an important piece of information that the Commission has requested from them. A commission spokesperson states: “To comply with merger deadlines, parties must supply the necessary information for the investigation in a timely fashion. Failure to do so will lead the commission to stop the clock.” “Once the missing information is supplied by the parties, the clock is re-started and the deadline for the Commission’s decision is then adjusted accordingly,” the spokesperson adds. Aon did not immediately respond when contacted for comment on the EU’s suspension of the investigation. At the end of January, Aon and WTW named the executive committee that will be effective upon the completion of the proposed combination.
