AMZN Amazon.com Inc

   By Ian Walker 
 

The Competition and Markets Authority said Wednesday that Amazon.com Inc.'s (AMZN) investment in food-delivery platform Deliveroo raises serious competition concerns for U.K. customers.

The CMA said the investment could damage competition in online food delivery as Amazon moves into the U.K. market. It also believes the deal could damage competition for online convenience grocery delivery.

"There are relatively few players in these markets, so we're concerned that Amazon having this kind of influence over Deliveroo could dampen the emerging competition between the two businesses," CMA Executive Director Andrea Gomes da Silva said.

In May, Deliveroo raised $575 million in a funding round led by Amazon, in which the U.S. tech giant became one of the biggest investors in the London-based startup.

The CMA launched a formal probe into Amazon's investment on Oct. 16 to see if the deal resulted in a relevant merger situation under U.K. rules and, if so, whether that might be expected to hurt competition in the U.K.

The U.K. regulator said that the companies have five working days to offer legally-binding proposals to address its concerns, otherwise it may refer the deal for a further investigation.

Write to Ian Walker at ian.walker@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 11, 2019 06:44 ET (11:44 GMT)

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