EU Gives Conditional Approval to CECONOMY Acquisition
JD.com’s acquisition of CECONOMY received conditional approval from the European Commission on 3 November 2026 under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation. The Commission said its decision depends on the parties complying fully with the commitments they submitted.
The business being acquired is a German retailer selling consumer electronics and household appliances, with MediaMarkt, MediaWorld and Saturn among its principal brands. CECONOMY said no further regulatory clearance remained outstanding and every condition of the offer had been satisfied. According to the company, the parties planned to complete the transaction in the days following the approval.
The Commission said the commitments require transactions between JD.com and CECONOMY within the group to use market terms. That requirement covers financing provided by JD.com to CECONOMY as well as other dealings between them.
Access for other retailers is another condition of the approval. According to the Commission, JD.com must offer third-party retailers its services for warehousing, logistics and technology on terms matching those available to CECONOMY. The Commission said the commitments run for ten years, with an independent trustee overseeing implementation under its supervision.
In its review, the Commission identified grants, tax incentives and preferential financing among the Chinese subsidies received by JD.com. It said those subsidies could distort competition within the EU. The finding included the logistics and technology capabilities that CECONOMY would have access to after the acquisition, rather than being limited to financing within the group.
The regulatory procedure included an in-depth investigation opened on 28 May 2026. According to the Commission’s Official Journal notice, the preliminary assessment had identified sufficient indications of a potential distortion of the EU internal market from foreign subsidies to proceed with that investigation.
The Commission said the Foreign Subsidies Regulation provides a way to address internal-market distortions caused by subsidies originating outside the EU. The regulation has applied since 12 July 2023.
* This article is based on publicly available information at the time of writing.