The long running saga between Kingfisher, the UK DIY and electrical group, and Castorama, the world's third largest DIY group, is drawing to a close after the French markets regulator approved Kingfisher's €5.1bn ($5bn) bid to take control of Castorama.

The regulator, Conseil de Marchés Financiers (CMF), finally gave its approval after months of deliberation. Kingfisher now has to wait for the Commission des Opérations de Bourse (COB) to approve the financial information in Kingfisher's offer prospectus, but this is merely a technicality and is expected to take place before the end of the week.