The Bundeskartellamt has approved Alloheim Senioren-Residenzen SE's acquisition of the Katharinenhof group, currently owned by Deutsche Wohnen SE, in the first phase of merger control.

Alloheim operates numerous senior citizens' homes and nursing homes across Germany, while the Katharinenhof group runs nursing homes in six federal states and offers assisted living services in seven locations.

The competition authority found no competition concerns as there are many local providers in the affected service areas. However, the shortage of staff in nursing homes poses challenges in meeting the demand for nursing home places.

Germany has over 10,000 nursing homes with more than 900,000 places, mostly operated by non-profit organizations or private companies, with a low number of public nursing homes owned by municipalities.

The merger was deemed not to significantly impact competition at the regional level for inpatient care, assisted living, and outpatient care services. The properties used by Katharinenhof for care services are not part of the acquisition.