Benzinga | Jul 23, 2021 12:28PM EDT

Illumina-Grail $8B Merger Hit By European Commission's In-Depth Investigation

* The European Commission has opened an in-depth, three-month investigation into Illumina Inc's (NASDAQ:ILMN) planned takeover of Grail, a deal valued between $7 billion to $8 billion.

* Last week, the EU announced that it was preparing to launch a full-scale probe into a pending merger.

* On Thursday, Illumina said it is committed to re-acquire Grail.

* European officials are probing the deal because of concerns it "may reduce competition and innovation in the emerging market for the development and commercialization of cancer detection tests based on sequencing technologies."

* The U.S. Federal Trade Commission in March moved to block Illumina's takeover of Grail on similar grounds. But FTC subsequently put on hold potential actions, as it takes a wait-and-see approach to the regulatory outcome in Europe.

* The commission has until November 29 to decide whether the deal would stifle competition in the field of early cancer detection.

* That timeline could be a problem for Illumina, as the company's lawyers have previously stated that the deal will expire by September 20 unless extended.

* Price Action: ILMN shares are up 1.47% at $493.67 during the market session on the last check Friday.