Two years ago, the FSR arrived as the new kid on the block in Brussels. Today, it is one of the EU's sharpest enforcement tools, and one that is only gaining prominence as geopolitical tensions reshape global investment and...more
The European Commission has launched a public consultation of its Horizontal and Non-Horizontal Merger Guidelines. Framed as a "comprehensive and ambitious" review, the Commission is exploring how to incorporate wider policy...more
5/27/2025
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Consultation ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Innovation ,
Merger Controls ,
Merger Reviews ,
Mergers ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Sustainability
Our latest edition explores the top merger control trends across the EU, US, UK, Middle East and Australia, and the outlook for 2025.
EU and US merger control enforcement: quo vadis?
In the EU, Executive Vice...more
1/20/2025
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Global Dealmaking ,
Member State ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Technology Sector ,
UK
Dealmakers are learning to navigate a stricter regulatory environment as UK and EU authorities take an increasingly interventionist stance
Global dealmaking experienced a slowdown in 2023 as the market battled headwinds on...more
6/24/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Borrowers ,
Capital Markets ,
Competition ,
EU ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Global Dealmaking ,
Investors ,
Lenders ,
Mergers ,
Shareholders ,
UK
The EC has published the long-awaited revised Market Definition Notice (the "Notice"), marking the first update since its initial adoption in 1997. The Notice clarifies the methodology for defining product and geographic...more
White & Case Global Antitrust Merger StatPak (WAMS)—the first real-time clearinghouse for global merger notification data—has analyzed merger notifications in reporting jurisdictions around the first half of calendar year...more
9/28/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Competition ,
Competition Authorities ,
EU ,
Global Dealmaking ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
OECD ,
Popular ,
Pre-Merger Filing Requirements ,
UK
The EU Court of Justice in the CK Telecoms1 ruling has addressed key questions of EU merger control, including the standard of proof for the European Commission to challenge a merger, the assessment of mergers below the...more
The European Commission ("EC") has published its final revised Horizontal Cooperation Guidelines and adopted new R&D and Specialisation Block Exemption Regulations (HBERs). The EC's aim is to provide more guidance for...more
The long-awaited European Court of Justice's judgment in Towercast confirmed that national competition authorities (and national courts) can apply abuse of dominance rules to mergers that did not trigger EU and national...more
Australia, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey See Significant Surge in Merger Filing Activity; US and EU Merger Filing Activity is Down Compared to 2021's Record Levels, But Still Above Historical Levels -
White & Case...more
12/20/2022
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Australia ,
Biden Administration ,
Brazil ,
Competition ,
EU ,
EU Horizontal Safeguard Regulation (HSR) ,
European Commission ,
Investigations ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Pre-Merger Filing Requirements ,
Russia ,
Saudi Arabia ,
Turkey ,
Ukraine
Advocate General Kokott has found that the General Court erred in law in requiring the European Commission to show anti-competitive effects of a merger with “strong probability” and that the scope of its judicial review was...more
10/28/2022
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Competition ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
Investment ,
Judicial Review ,
Mergers ,
Standard of Proof ,
Telecommunications ,
UK
On 18 May and 22 June 2022, the EU General Court upheld two European Commission prohibition decisions. Both judgments endorsed the European Commission's assessment of the mergers at issue, recognising a broad margin of...more
9/19/2022
/ Appeals ,
Buyers ,
Competition ,
Declaratory Judgments ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
European Merger Control Regulation ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Remedies ,
Standard of Proof ,
Standard of Review
There have been a number of developments in merger control in 2020 and Q1 2021. Some are related to the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic, while others are borne out of the ambitions and changes sought by individual...more