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Ritchie Bros and Euro Auctions cancel merger

Ritchie Bros and Euro Auctions have cancelled merger plans after the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) refereed the deal for an in-depth ‘Phase 2’ investigation. In turn, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has now called off its investigation into the competition concerns that were raised by the merger.

Ritchie Bros and Euro Auctions are the two biggest auction service providers for used heavy equipment in the UK and are relied on by businesses across the country. During its initial Phase 1 investigation, the CMA found that the companies have a very high market share in the supply of auction services for heavy construction machinery, with Euro Auctions being the clear market leader and Ritchie Bros the second largest provider.

The CMA also found that other auction providers were significantly smaller and that auction buyers and sellers were unlikely to switch to other sale methods – for example, marketplaces, listing websites and dealers. As a result, the CMA had concerns that the proposed deal could reduce competition in the UK market, which could result in higher prices for the companies’ customers and a lower quality service.

Following the CMA’s Phase 1 investigation, the firms offered undertakings to address these competition concerns. However, the CMA considered these were unlikely to effectively address the competition concerns identified and so the merger was referred for an in-depth Phase 2 investigation on March 18th 2022.

After Ritchie Bros asked the CMA to pause its investigation to allow the firms to consider their options, the companies publicly announced on April 29th that the merger had been abandoned. As a result, Ritchie Bros and Euro Auctions will continue to compete for the supply of heavy equipment auction services.

Record-breaking Leeds sale
Undeterred by the outcome, Euro Auctions achieved its most successful Leeds sale during a four-day event at the end of April. With over 5,500 lots going under the hammer, the sale finished at just under £45.3 million. When compared to the same sale 12 months ago, this sale was up 14%, with bidders from 86 countries registering to take part.

In all, 571 vendors from 23 countries sent equipment to the sale. Almost 4,000 bidders registered for the sale, of which 477 were first time registrations, and 16% of those first-timers were successful in purchasing on the day.

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