The planned 2025 split of the 2M alliance, after ten years, by the world's largest and second-largest container shipping lines – MSC and Maersk – has been looking increasingly likely, as Maersk pursues its integrated strategy and MSC's expansion has given them the scale to effectively offer a global network without any alliance partners. In a joint statement on 25th January, MSC and Maersk said that the two companies had mutually agreed to discontinue the 2M vessel sharing agreement (VSA), which coordinates many of the two carriers' primary east- west services. Portents for the end of the 2M partnership had been growing, particularly as pandemic driven demand accelerated MSC's expansion strategy, with almost 250 second-hand container ships and 1.75m teu in new tonnage bought since August 2020. The announcement by 2M is likely to be the beginning of a re-shaping of the alliances and vessel sharing agreements and most particularly on the major east-west, transpacific and transatlantic trades.