Australia will soon shift to a mandatory and suspensory merger control regime, with the transition commencing mid-2025. We provide below our key takeaways and observations on the bill which now has the support of both major...more
On 30 November 2023, the Treasury of the Australian Government released its consultation paper on a proposed Scams Code Framework (the Framework) which seeks to establish robust codes and targeted measures to reduce scam...more
Enforcement strengthens with more complexity -
Globally, antitrust enforcement in 2024 is on track to repeat the themes of 2023. Expect continued use by the agencies of novel theories of antitrust harm and increasing...more
3/1/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
China ,
Competition Authorities ,
DCMA ,
Global Dealmaking ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Technology Sector ,
Threshold Requirements ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
The EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) took effect in July 2023. It aims to regulate subsidies granted by non-EU countries to ensure that they do not distort competition in the EU internal market. For dealmakers, it is...more
2/29/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
EU ,
Filing Requirements ,
Foreign Subsidiaries ,
Foreign Subsidies ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
International Trade ,
Investment ,
Investors ,
Mergers ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Requirements
Antitrust authorities continue to use powers to review deals that fall below merger control filing thresholds. For merging parties this means uncertainty. It is crucial that the possibility of review – including a...more
2/28/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Competition Authorities ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
Foreign Subsidiaries ,
Investment ,
Member State ,
Mergers ,
Private Equity Funds ,
Threshold Requirements
Traditionally, private equity firms were seen as benign investors from an antitrust perspective. This is changing. In the past 12 months, PE-funded acquisitions have faced progressively more rigorous scrutiny by antitrust...more
2/28/2024
/ Antitrust Division ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
EU ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Investment ,
Investors ,
Merger Controls ,
Private Equity ,
Private Equity Firms ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
Global deal value and volume fell again in 2023, down 33% and 18% respectively compared to 2022. This is unsurprising, given persistently tough macroeconomic conditions and geopolitical tensions. Dealmakers are also facing an...more
2/28/2024
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Australia ,
Competition Authorities ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
Merger Controls ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
The Australian Treasury has released a paper to begin consultation on potential merger control reform. If implemented, the proposed reforms would transform Australia’s voluntary, non-suspensory merger control system – with...more
European Commission’s record gun-jumping fine on Illumina serves as warning to merging parties -
The European Commission (EC) has imposed a fine of around EUR432 million on genomics company Illumina for closing its...more
8/2/2023
/ Annual Reports ,
Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Cartels ,
Corporate Sales Transactions ,
EU ,
EUMR ,
European Commission ,
European Merger Control Regulation ,
Federal Cartel Office (the FCO) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Foreign Subsidies ,
Gun-Jumping ,
National Security ,
Popular
For a number of years the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has advocated for amendments to the country’s merger control rules. The current regime is voluntary, and the ACCC cannot itself prohibit a...more
This newsletter is a summary of the antitrust developments we think are most interesting to your business. Lisa Emanuel, counsel based in Sydney, is our editor this month (learn more about Lisa in our Q&A feature at the end...more