Reuters
- French luxury goods conglomerate LVMH announced on Wednesday morning that it was pulling out of deal to buy New York-based jeweler Tiffany & Co.
- The $16.2 billion transaction would have been the largest in the history of luxury retail.
- The announcement came immediately after Tiffany said it would take legal action against LVMH, accusing the French company of deliberately delaying the takeover.
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French luxury goods giant LVMH will pull out of its $16 billion takeover of Tiffany & Co after a series of delays that “undermined” the deal, it said in a statement on Wednesday.
LVMH, which owns Louis Vuitton, Dior, and many other brands, said it had received a letter from the French government asking it to delay the deal to January 2021 in response to US threats of tariffs on French imports. Tiffany had separately requested the deadline for the deal be pushed back from November 21 to December 31, LVMH said.
“As a results of these elements … LVMH will therefore not be able to complete the acquisition of Tiffany & Co,” it said.
The announcement came immediately after Tiffany accused the French firm of deliberately delaying the deal. It said it would file a lawsuit in Delaware on Wednesday to try to force LVMH to complete the acquisition.
LVMH first announced its acquisition of the luxury jeweler in November 2019, and said it expected the transaction to close in mid-2020. At $16.2 billion, it would have been the largest-ever takeover in the luxury goods sector.
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