Indian Tribunal Rejects Amazon Appeal Against Deal Suspension

On Monday, Amazon’s appeal against an antitrust suspension of its $200 million investment deal with Future Group was rejected by an Indian appeals tribunal, which claims the e-commerce giant hid information when it sought approval back in 2019.

Suspension of the deal was issued in December by India’s antitrust agency, which alleged Amazon suppressed the actual scope of the 2019 investment and made incorrect statements. However, Amazon said it had not concealed information and challenged the agency’s decision.

Dismissing Amazon’s plea, the Indian tribunal said it held the e-commerce giant accountable “for its failure to provide relevant information on the combination” and upheld the antitrust body’s decision to suspend the 2019 deal.

The tribunal also upheld a penalty of around $26 million that was imposed against Amazon by the antitrust body in December. Amazon is expected to pay the sum within 45 days.