Illumina prevails over FTC’s challenge of $7B Grail buyout

An administrative judge ruled Illumina’s $7 billion acquisition of cancer-testing company Grail didn’t violate antitrust law, Illumina said on Sept. 1.

A Federal Trade Commission lawsuit threatened to unwind Illumina’s acquisition of Grail, a blood testing company that screens for cancers at an early stage.

Charles Dadswell

“As we’ve stated from the outset, this transaction is procompetitive, will advance innovation, lower healthcare costs and save lives,” said Charles Dadswell, general counsel of Illumina, in a statement.

In the antitrust action, the FTC had argued that Grail competitors rely on Illumina’s DNA sequencers that dominate the market.

Illumina countered that Grail rivals can turn to DNA sequencing platforms from BGI Group and other emerging competitors. BGI, a Chinese conglomerate that has faced scrutiny over its handling of sensitive health information, began selling its DNA sequencers in the US on Aug. 29 after an earlier court win against Illumina.

In response to the FTC’s lawsuit, Illumina has touted its growing competition in court filings in hopes of securing Grail, which is chasing a cancer testing market that could be worth as much as $50 billion by 2035.

An FTC spokesman said the agency had no comment on the decision by administrative law judge Michael Chappell, which has yet to be released. The FTC’s case was an early test of the agency more aggressively using antitrust law to stop large companies from acquiring promising upstarts.

Separately, European antitrust regulators can scrutinize the Illumina-Grail deal, a top European court ruled in July.

Illumina spun out Grail in 2016 as a standalone company, but later moved to reabsorb the blood testing company.

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