US FTC challenges Illumina’s purchase of PacBio

Abstract

The US Federal Trade Commission has challenged Illumina’s planned $1.2 billion acquisition of Pacific Biosciences of California, its smaller next-generation DNA-sequencing (NGS) rival. The antitrust regulator says it has ordered an administrative trial on the deal for August and will seek a restraining order in federal court if necessary to prevent it from going through until then. DNA sequencing is used for prenatal testing, to diagnose disease, and to enable ancestry research services offered by companies like 23andMe. Illumina is by far the leading provider of NGS instruments and systems. “When a monopolist buys a potential rival, it can harm competition,” Gail Levine, deputy director of the FTC’s competition bureau, says in an agency announcement. Illumina issued a statement saying that it “strongly” disagrees with the FTC’s decision and that it “will continue to work through the regulatory approval process as we consider next steps.” The deal, first announced in