Schindler fights back against mega-merger of competitors

The Lucerne-based lift company plans to file a complaint against the announced merger of Kone and TK Elevator.
 

The Schindler company is fighting back against the announced merger of two competitors. Last week, the Bloomberg business newspaper reported that the Finnish lift manufacturer Kone intends to acquire its German competitor, TK Elevator (TKE).

The Schindler company, with headquarters in Ebikon, canton Lucerne, plans to file a complaint with the anti-trust authorities, as reported by the Reuters news agency on Tuesday. According to the agency, CEO Paolo Compagna said a merger would be a "bloodbath", as the two manufacturers would have to eliminate overlaps in their customer base, production facilities and workforce. "That would shake the industry," he told Reuters.

Finanz und Wirtschaft quotes Paolo Compagna as saying “I am certain that we would not be the only ones advocating for this antitrust law to be reviewed in every possible country.” Schindler’s stance on this merger is not new, but rather corresponds to its position at the time of Kone’s earlier, ultimately unsuccessful, bid for TKE in 2019.

Schindler's headquarters in Ebikon, Lucerne.                         Photo provided
 

The merger of Kone and the former Thyssenkrupp subsidiary TKE would create a new giant in the industry. The two companies currently rank third and fourth among the world’s largest lift manufacturers, with Schindler in second place; only the US-based Otis is larger. According to Finanz und Wirtschaft, a merger of the two companies would create the world’s largest lift manufacturer. According to Bloomberg, the owners of TK Elevator, a consortium of private equity funds, are seeking a valuation of up to € 25 billion for the transaction.

Kone and TK did not respond to the report, and no one at Schindler was available for comment on Tuesday evening.