Albertsons terminates $25 billion merger with Kroger after regulatory hurdle

(Reuters) – Albertsons (NYSE:ACI) on Wednesday terminated its $25 billion merger agreement with Kroger (NYSE:KR) after the U.S. District Court in Oregon and the King County Superior Court for the State of Washington blocked the deal.

“Given the recent federal and state court decisions to block our proposed merger with Kroger, we have made the difficult decision to terminate the merger agreement,” Albertsons CEO Vivek Sankaran said.

The Federal Trade Commission had argued at a three-week trial in Portland, Oregon, that the merger would eliminate competition between the top two traditional grocery chains, leading to higher prices for shoppers and reduced bargaining leverage for unionized workers.