Fallout From the Figma Acquisition
Investors alleged that Adobe secretly sought to buy out Figma to neutralize a competitive threat to products like Photoshop, Illustrator, and Adobe XD — and ultimately paid a “shocking” $20 billion, the largest deal of its kind.
After the acquisition was announced, Adobe’s market value reportedly plunged by $30 billion, signaling investors’ loss of confidence in the company’s growth strategy. The plaintiffs claimed this drop revealed Adobe’s vulnerability in the design software market.
However, regulators — including the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority and the U.S. Department of Justice — later applied intense antitrust scrutiny, leading Adobe to abandon the acquisition altogether.
No Actionable Misstatements, Court Says
When dismissing the original complaint in March, Judge Koeltl found the plaintiffs failed to show any misleading statements or concrete losses tied to Figma’s competition. He reiterated that stance Friday, stating that “the plaintiffs have not alleged that competition from Figma caused any lost sales or decline in revenue.”
Counsel for Adobe declined to comment on the decision. Attorneys for the investors did not respond to requests for comment.
