Asda has offered Safeway £2 billion for 70 of its stores in a last-ditch bid to derail a takeover bid Morrisons.
The offer is intended to devalue the anticipated Morrison bid, which is expected to be in the region of £2.9bn.
Asda's chief executive Tony De Nunzio said: “We have made our interest in buying Safeway stores well know and that interest remains.”
Asda's offer would be subject to an investigation the Competition Commission that would take the already protracted Safeway takeover process well into next year.
One analyst said: “I am not surprised Asda has made an offer, but if the Competition Commission wants a fourth national competitor, then weakening Safeway and strengthening Asda is exactly what it doesn't want.”
However, it is believed that executives at Asda were willing to follow through with the offer and were likely to approach the Office of Fair Trading within days to kickstart the regulatory process.
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