Feb 14, 2022
JD Sports and Footasylum fined for sharing information after merger blocked
The UK competition watchdog has fined JD Sports and Footasylum for sharing commercially sensitive information after a merger between the sportswear retailers was blocked in May 2021, including during a meeting their chief executives held in a car. The regulator fined the two groups almost £5mn, with Footasylum shouldering the bulk of the penalty, after the companies held two meetings during the CMA's investigation into the merger last year. The watchdog said on Monday the companies failed to notify it immediately of meetings between JD Sports chief executive Peter Cowgill and Footasylum chief executive Barry Bown in July and August 2021, despite an order preventing sharing of commercially sensitive information during its investigation. JD Sports responded to the CMA's fine to say there was no legal requirement to notify the regulator of meetings. "At no point has there been any intention to breach the rules," JD Sports said in a statement on Monday, "Although JD does accept that, inadvertently, it was in receipt of limited commercially sensitive information and that this was not reported to the CMA immediately".
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