The UK Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) has issued Meta (Facebook’s parent company) with a £1.5 million fine for failure to comply with an Interim Enforcement Order (“IEO”) imposed under the CMA’s investigation of the company’s acquisition of Giphy.
The fine follows an earlier fine of £50.5 million imposed by the regulator in October 2021.
Under the IEO, Meta was required to inform the CMA of any material changes to its business, including changes of key staff. The CMA reports that Meta failed to inform them of the resignation of 3 employees included in a list of key staff provided to the CMA by Meta.
While this fine is lower than the first enforcement fine against Meta, it does demonstrate the CMA’s ongoing enthusiasm for enforcement action, particularly in the context of IEOs and merger inquiries.
More detail can be found in the CMA’s press release.
Please contact Tim Cowen if you have any questions.