The Israel antitrust authority is considering imposing a fine of about 6 million shekels - $ 1.8 million on Facebook and its Israeli arm for buying two Israeli companies without its consent, Reuters reported.

Authorities said they sent an email to Facebook after discovering that the social media giant had bought two Israeli companies - RedKix Inc in 2018 and Service Friend Ltd in 2019 - without approval and in violation of Israel's Economic Competition Law.

Facebook was required to report transactions requiring CEO consent because Facebook is a monopoly with a market share of more than 50% in Israel, the agency said.

By law, an organization that owns 50% or more of any relevant market must obtain the consent of the CEO before entering into any transaction that constitutes a merger.

The authorities said that Facebook, along with Instagram, is considered a monopoly on the social media market in Israel.