Dive Summary:

• The Federal Trade Commission has announced it has unconditionally approved a merger between office supply merchants Office Depot and OfficeMax in an all-stock transaction.
• The merger between the two sides remains subject to final conditions and is expected to be completed by Nov. 5.
• The newly-merged company would have a combined 2012 total sales figure of roughly $17 billion.

Dive Insight:

“We have been preparing for the integration for the past several months and are delighted that, with this key regulatory milestone now complete, we have taken another step in our path to becoming a combined company,” says Neil Austrian, CEO of Office Depot. OfficeMax and Office Depot first announced the two sides had reached a merger agreement in February of this year, pending a completed review of the transaction by the FTC.