Illumina Gets European Commission Order to Divest Grail

By Ben Glickman

Illumina is evaluating divestiture options for Grail after the European Commission ruled the gene-sequencing company had 12 months to sell the recently acquired business.

The San Diego-based company said Friday that it could explore a third-party sale or a capital markets transaction under the EC's order, which allows for flexibility in the structure of the divestiture. The company also may be able to extend the deadline to complete the divestiture by three additional months.

Illumina acquired the cancer-test developer Grail for $7.1 billion in 2021, but the deal was blocked last year by regulators over antitrust concerns.

Illumina said Friday that it still believed the EC did not have jurisdiction over its acquisition. The company has challenged the EC's jurisdiction in the European Court of Justice, and a decision in the case is pending.

Write to Ben Glickman at ben.glickman@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 13, 2023 14:42 ET (18:42 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2023 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.