Brazil’s antitrust regulator, known as Cade, recommended the approval of the merger between Marfrig and BRF, confirming the companies’ view that the deal poses a low risk of market concentration.
On Tuesday, Cade issued a recommendation for unconditional approval of the merger. If no member of the board opposes the recommendation within the next two weeks, the creation of Brazil’s seventh-largest company will be formally approved.
In addition to the CADE approval, the merger between Marfrig and BRF must still be approved by shareholders at meetings scheduled for June 18.
Given how the operation is structured, Marfrig is entitled to vote at the shareholders’ meeting of BRF, Sadia’s parent company — which virtually guarantees approval. Moreover, BRF’s two most influential minority shareholders, Saudi Arabia’s Salic and the Brazilian pension fund Previ, have already expressed support for the deal.
If all approvals are secured, the merger will be concluded on June 28, officially creating BMRF.
