The UK has green-lit Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s (HPE) USD 14 billion acquisition of Juniper Networks, concluding that the deal raises no competition issues.
The approval follows an investigation by the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which began in June and has now cleared the merger first announced in January.
Read More: UK Launches Probe into HPE’s USD 14 Billion Juniper Networks Acquisition
When the acquisition was announced, HPE described it as a strategic move to “supercharge” its AI-native networking capabilities and to enhance both companies’ positions in the expanding AI sector.
However, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) needed to examine whether the merger would result in a “substantial lessening of competition” within the UK markets. As part of this process, the CMA initiated a ‘Phase 1’ investigation to determine if a more in-depth review was necessary.
The European Commission recently determined that the acquisition would not significantly impact competition in the networking equipment sector, noting that the companies are not direct competitors.
Related: European Commission Approves HPE’s USD 14 Billion Acquisition of Juniper Networks
HPE initially revealed the deal to acquire Juniper Networks in January and anticipates completing the transaction by early 2025.
Juniper Networks will be HPE’s first major acquisition in network technology since its USD 3 billion purchase of Aruba in 2015 and its USD 2.7 billion acquisition of 3Com in 2009. It also marks HPE’s largest deal since acquiring Autonomy. HPE anticipates that this acquisition will double the size of its current network operations and account for over half of its annual operating income.
Continue Reading: Vodafone-Three Merger Faces Further Delay as CMA Extends Investigation
