CBr4 has been employed as a halogen bond donor catalyst for the selective activation of aldehyde, to achieve an efficient solvent- and metal-free CC bond forming reaction in the presence of strong acid sensitive groups such as methoxy, cyanide, ester, and ketal for the synthesis of α,β-unsaturated ketones. This unique capability of CBr4 to act as a halogen bond donor has been explored and established using UV-vis as well as IR spectroscopy. Moreover, this unprecedented methodology enables the synthesis of the pharmaceutically important molecule licochalcone A. © 2017 American Chemical Society.