Britain's competition watchdog has said there is no need for an enquiry into a prospective purchase of two British newspapers by Russian businessman Alexander Lebedev.
Lebedev, a Russian billionaire and a former KGB officer, already owns a majority stake in the London Evening Standard paper and has been in talks with Independent News & Media (INM) to buy the loss-making The Independent and The Independent on Sunday.
"There is no competition barrier," a spokesman for Office of Fair Trading (OFT) said on Wednesday.
The official said that to qualify for an OFT investigation the merged company's UK turnover must be 70 million British pounds ($107 million) or hold more than a 25% share of supply in Britain. The proposed deal between Lebedev and Independent News & Media reportedly does not reach either threshold.
With the approval by the OFT, the sale could be announced by the time the INM group reports its 2009 financial results on March 24.
Lebedev's purchase of the Evening Standard has caused controversy in Britain over the Russian oligarch's background in the KGB.
The 50-year-old former KGB colonel holds a 30% share in Russia's Aeroflot and with former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev owns a 49% stake in Russia's Novaya Gazeta paper.
LONDON, March 18 (RIA Novosti)
