Dollar General—"Setting The Record Straight" On Antitrust For Family Dollar

Unless you have been in the middle of a bidding war where antitrust concerns are front and center, what is playing out between Dollar General and Family Dollar is probably unfamiliar to you, as it is rarely seen outside of the boardroom.

To get you up to speed, back in July Family Dollar agreed to be acquired by Dollar Tree for $8.5 billion. Not wanting to be left on the sidelines, Dollar General upped the bidding by responding with an unsolicited offer of $8.95 billion. In a matter of days, Family Dollar rejected that offer "on the basis of antitrust regulatory considerations" even though Dollar General committed in its offer "to divest up to 700 retail stores in order to achieve the requisite antitrust approvals" and agreed "to fund the $305 million break-up fee" that Family Dollar would owe Dollar Tree if it terminated the Family Dollar/Dollar Tree merger agreement. Apparently, the 700 stores "is approximately the same percentage of the total combined stores