Proposal would facilitate adoption of new tax policies in the European Union -
On January 15, 2019, the European Commission (the “Commission”) released its proposal to gradually remove the ability of European Union (“EU”)...more
Antitrust and Competition -
The European Commission conditionally approves a transaction in the data security sector after in-depth review -
On 11 December 2018, the European Commission announced it had conditionally...more
On January 10, 2019, the European Commission (the “Commission”) published a Report on the Operation of the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (Directive 2011/61/EU or “AIFMD”). ...more
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and the European Banking Authority (EBA) published two complementary assessments of the regulatory coverage of crypto-assets under existing EU legislation and also set out...more
The December issue of the Brussels Regulatory Brief includes the following topics: -
Trade -
EU moves to bolster free movement of goods through extended mutual recognition -
On 22 November 2018, the Austrian...more
Antitrust and Competition - European Commission consulting on a new set of commitments in pay-TV investigation - On 9 November 2018, the European Commission announced it was seeking comments on commitments proposed by a film...more
Antitrust and Competition - European Commission to consult on exemption regime for vertical agreements - The European Commission has indicated it will launch a wide-ranging public consultation on the Vertical Block Exemption...more
Antitrust and Competition - Best Practices Code for State aid control adopted by the European Commission - On 16 July 2018, the European Commission adopted a Code of Best Practices for the conduct of State aid control...more
9/4/2018
/ Brussels Regulation ,
Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ,
ECON ,
EIOPA ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Popular ,
REACH ,
UK Brexit
Antitrust and Competition - Gun jumping attracts increased scrutiny by the European Commission - The European Commission continues its scrutiny against breaches of the procedural obligations in the framework of the EU merger...more
Antitrust and Competition - Substantial Assets Divestiture Needed to Secure Clearance for the Creation of a Company That Will Control More Than a Quarter of the World’s Seed and Pesticides Market - On 21 March 2018, the...more
4/20/2018
/ Bilateral Investment Treaties ,
Blockchain ,
Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinTech ,
Pesticides ,
Research and Development ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)
A New Digital Services Tax (…for now) - The European Commission is taking significant actions to address the taxation of the digital economy that would impose a 3% tax on digital services until a global and longer-term...more
Antitrust and Competition - Another transaction in the technology sector referred to the European Commission for its review - The European Commission (“Commission”) is yet again set to review a transaction in the technology...more
3/8/2018
/ CFIUS ,
Data Protection ,
Data Protection Authority ,
EU ,
EUMR ,
European Commission ,
European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) ,
Facebook ,
Foreign Investment ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Geo-Blocking ,
Member State ,
Mergers ,
Tax Evasion ,
Telecommunications
On 10 November 2017, the European Union (“EU”) General Court (“GC”) rendered a judgment partially annulling the European Commission’s (“Commission”) decision fining a broker for its involvement in the Libor Yen interest rate...more
12/8/2017
/ Anti-Dumping Duty ,
Blockchain ,
Cartels ,
Competition ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Energy Sector ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Member State ,
Merger Controls ,
Popular ,
Radio Stations ,
Telecommunications ,
Television Programming ,
WTO
On 6 September 2017, the Court of Justice, the European Union (“EU”)’s highest court, issued its much awaited decision in a case of abuse of dominance by a US microchip manufacturer using exclusivity or loyalty rebates, i.e....more
On 6 July 2017, the European Commission (“Commission”) announced it had opened three investigations against companies which have allegedly breached the European Union (“EU”) merger procedural rules.
Two of the cases...more
On 10 May 2017, the European Commission (“Commission”) published its final report (“Report”) concluding a wide-ranging two-year long inquiry into e-commerce (“Inquiry”). During the Inquiry – which was conceived as part of the...more
7/7/2017
/ Capital Markets Union ,
Central Counterparties ,
Competition ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Digital Single Market ,
E-Commerce ,
EMIR ,
EU ,
EU Passenger Name Record (PNR) ,
European Commission ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Geo-Blocking ,
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) ,
Member State
On May 15, 2017, the European Commission (“Commission”) announced it had opened a formal investigation into a global pharmaceutical company for possible abuse of dominant position. The alleged conduct of the company,...more
6/13/2017
/ Canada ,
CETA ,
Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ,
EMIR ,
EU ,
EUMR ,
European Commission ,
Financial Stability Board ,
Free Trade Agreements ,
Mergers ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
On 16 March, the European Commission (“Commission”) announced it had launched a new tool in its fight against cartels and other anti-competitive practices. The Commission unveiled a new whistleblowing tool, which would allow...more
The European Commission’s action plan builds on the results of its green paper on retail financial services published for public consultation in December 2015.
In the framework of the Capital Markets Union (CMU)...more
On 13 March 2017, it was announced that a United States (“U.S.”) chipmaker will acquire an autonomous vehicle technology company based in Israel for approximately USD 15.3 billion. This transaction may provide an interesting...more
On 8 February 2017, the Commission announced it had imposed fines totaling almost EUR 68 million on three companies for participating in a cartel to fix purchase prices of scrap lead-acid automotive batteries.
The cartel...more
On 1 January 2017, the torch of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union (“EU”) was passed from Slovakia to Malta. The Presidency rotates every six months between the EU Member States, but continuity is guaranteed...more
2/6/2017
/ Brussels Regulation ,
Capital Markets Union ,
Cybersecurity ,
Digital Single Market ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
FSB ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Member State ,
Mergers ,
UK
January will bring some important changes in the internal composition and current leadership of the European Parliament (“EP”). Such changes are expected to shake the EP’s internal life, even without a shift in the general...more
12/21/2016
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Banking Sector ,
Brussels Convention ,
Capital Markets ,
Competition ,
Cybersecurity ,
EU ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Member State ,
TLAC ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)
The European Commission (“Commission”) has recently published statistics concerning the European Union (“EU”) merger control review process. Typically, the Commission examines larger mergers with an EU dimension, meaning that...more
11/23/2016
/ Broadcasting ,
Capital Markets Union ,
CETA ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) ,
Member State ,
Merger Controls ,
NCAs ,
Online Platforms ,
Regulation Technical Standards (RTS) ,
Telecommunications ,
TLAC ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) ,
TTIP
The European Commission (“Commission”) has recently imposed a record fine of EUR 2.93 billion on some of the largest truck producers for their involvement in a cartel lasting 14 years and covering the entire European Economic...more