Trade Me bid under further scrutiny

The Commerce Commission has released a statement of unresolved issues relating to Trade Me’s application for clearance to buy PropertyNZ Limited.

Trade Me runs the Trade Me Property website and has secured a conditional agreement to purchase PropertyNZ, which owns and operates the homes.co.nz website.

The commission’s statement outlines potential competition issues with the acquisition following initial rounds of investigations. It is now seeking submissions on those matters from the two companies and other interested parties.

The statement of unresolved issues can be found on the commission’s case register and submissions, with the reference “TradeMe/Homes” in the subject line, can emailed to registrar@comcom.govt.nz.

Submissions will be accepted until close of business on July 14, 2021, with cross-submissions due no later than July 21, 2021.

“We will give clearance to a proposed merger if we are satisfied that the merger is unlikely to have the effect of substantially lessening competition in a market,” the commission says.

It is due to announce a decision on the application by August 6, 2021, but this date may be extended.