BKI - FTC said to start asking for info on InterContinental's purchase of Black Knight

The Federal Trade Commission is said to have starting requesting information about Intercontinental Exchange's ( NYSE: ICE ) planned $13 billion purchase of Black Knight ( NYSE: BKI ).

After weeks of talks with third parties, the antitrust agency started out sending civil investigative demands, according to a Dealreporter item from late Monday, which cited sources familiar.

The FTC is said to be inquiring with customers and bankers and the review is said to be in the very early stages, according to the report.

The report comes after analysts initially said when the deal was announced in early May that the combination could be problematic from an antitrust perspective. This is also evidenced by Black Knight's stock price at ~$66, while the deal is valued at $85, indicating a significant spread and concern about regulators' potentially blocking the deal.

A Raymond James analyst said at the time that the deal poses "significant" antitrust issues and there aren't any simple remedies. The acquisition could see antitrust concern as ICE's Ellie Mae's Encompass platform is the largest provider of loan origination software and Black Knight's Empower is the "clear #2," according to Raymond James analyst Patrick O'Shaughnessy.

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