(Yicai Global) July 28 -- It has been almost a year since China's ride-hailing behemoth, DiDi Chuxing bought Uber's China business, but the ministry of commerce (Mofcom) has still not determined whether the deal constitutes a monopoly.

The antitrust bureau of Mofcom is still reviewing the merger in the light of relevant laws and regulations, said ministry spokesperson Gao Feng yesterday.

An industry insider told Yicai Global that what makes the case interesting for market players is the presence and involvement of variable interest entities including China's giant internet companies. The insider asked: "Would the anti-trust regulator accept such a buyout, or is the presence of variable interest entities an obstacle to anti-trust review?"

Mofcom has not accepted any merger case that involved 'variable interest entities,' for many years, and this has become an unspoken 'rule,' several sources closely connected with such cases told Yicai Global reporter.

MOFCOM held a meeting on the Didi-Uber China merger early this year, but the discussions were only limited to specific financial matters such as DiDi's turnover calculations, not whether the regulator would approve the deal, disclosed a source who was present at the meeting.

Judging by what the ministry has done so far, it is unlikely that it will file the case. "The probability of the case being filed is small," suggested a market insider who once worked inside the antitrust committee at the State Council.

Shi Jianzhong, an advisor to the antitrust committee of the State Council and vice president of Beijing-based China University of Political Science and Law, questioned transparency of Mofcom's review practices. A conclusion should be reached on such a high-profile case which has drawn a lot of attention in the business world, but it is hard to tell now what the outcome could be, Shi said.