Advised Regus During UK Investigation of Avanta Serviced Offices Acquisition

In January 2016, the UK Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) approved the completed £40 million acquisition by Regus of Avanta Serviced Office Group. Regus thereby acquired the London-based network of 33 serviced offices. The CMA approved the undertakings offered by the parties, thereby refraining from referring the transaction for a Phase II investigation.

Compass Lexecon provided economic advice and analysis to Regus during the CMA investigation. We conducted a hotspot analysis with a focus on local overlaps and calculation of market shares centered around the parties' stores. Based on a difference-in-difference method, we estimated potential price effects from the merger. Finally, we analyzed customer switching and lost leads based on a survey questionnaire.

The Compass Lexecon team, including Neil Dryden, Enrique Andreu, Martina Caldana, Hyung-Joong Kim and Segye Shin, worked with a team of Slaughter and May.