EU Antitrust Watchdog Stops Aon, Willis Probe

EU antitrust regulators have suspended their investigation into Aon’s $30 billion bid for Willis Towers Watson while they wait for the USinsurance broker to provide data required for the case.

The European Commission, which kicked off its probe in December because of concerns that the deal to create the world’s largest insurance broker may hurt competition in major markets,said it stopped the clock on Monday.

“This procedure in merger investigations is activated if the parties fail to provide, in a timely fashion, an important piece of information that the Commission has requested from them,” a spokeswoman for the EU competition enforcer said.

“Once the missing information is supplied by the parties,the clock is re-started and the deadline for the Commission’s Decision is then adjusted accordingly,” she said.

The previous deadline for the EU decision on the deal wasMay 10. The EU investigation was launched after Aon declined to provide concessions during the Commission’s preliminary review.

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