The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has extended the deadline to complete its in-depth probe into Photoshop owner ADOBE’s $20bn acquisition of Figma, a cloud-based designer platform.
On 25 October, the watchdog announced it would extend the deadline by eight weeks to February 2024.
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The announcement comes after the watchdog launched a phase two investigation into the deal in July after Adobe refused to offer any changes to quell its concerns.
The CMA said both companies have made a series of detailed arguments related to its competition concerns.
CMA inquiry chair Margot Daly said: “In taking this decision, the Inquiry Group had regard to the complexity of this case and the need to carefully consider the merger parties’ detailed submissions received in response to the Annotated Issues Statement and working papers.”
The deal is also facing scrutiny from the EU and US competition watchdogs. The EU’s regulator recently questioned the company’s rivals on how the merger would affect the market.
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By GlobalDataThe questionnaires focused on what harm could be caused by Adobe cutting the pierce of Figma’s products or bundling it with its Creative Cloud offering.
Adobe claims its buyout of Figma will not harm competition as it is not a direct competitor to any of its mainline products.
Talking to CNBC, an Adobe spokesperson previously said: “Adobe and Figma focus on very different product areas today.
“Figma is a leader in interactive product design, focused on building a collaborative web platform. Adobe is a leader in the creative tools space, helping millions of users create amazing visual content.”
If the acquisition is successful, it would be one of the largest buyouts of a private tech start-up in history.
