Work Area: Merger Control

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority has cleared Korean Air’s €1.31 billion acquisition of a majority stake in Asiana Airlines without a Phase II investigation, after the buyer promised to divest slots and enter into a cooperative partnership agreement with Virgin Atlantic.

01 March 2023

The UK’s antitrust watchdog plans to clear Viasat’s $7.3 billion acquisition of Inmarsat, concluding no remedies are needed as significant competition will emerge from a rapidly growing market that has already changed significantly during the course of its in-depth probe.

01 March 2023

The Competition Commission of South Africa has asked the country’s specialist antitrust tribunal to impose conditions on an insurance joint venture between SEM and Allianz Europe due to concerns the deal may facilitate information exchanges between both companies.

01 March 2023

The Australian government has blocked a Chinese national’s Singapore-based investment fund from increasing its stake in a domestic rare earths mining company on “national interest” grounds.

01 March 2023

A Polish appellate court has confirmed a lower court decision that overturned a merger block by the national competition enforcer for the first time, allowing a pair of media companies to take steps towards completing their deal.

01 March 2023

Retail investors may pursue the breakup of Charles Schwab/TD Ameritrade, a Texas federal judge has ruled in rejecting the brokerage firm's motion to dismiss.

01 March 2023

Investment firm Standard General has accused the Federal Communications Commission of attempting to block its $5.4 billion acquisition of television broadcaster Tegna through procedural delays.

28 February 2023

The US antitrust agencies would benefit from clarifying how they define antitrust markets involving multiple products or services in their updated merger guidelines, a former Bureau of Competition director at the Federal Trade Commission has said.

27 February 2023

Canada’s Competition Bureau has accepted a global remedy package from Sika that includes the divestment of 13 production plants in the US and Canada to clear its proposed €5.2 billion purchase of rival MBCC Group.

24 February 2023

Germany’s Federal Cartel Office has conditionally cleared Müller’s acquisition of various assets from rival dairy company Royal Friesland Campina, after straying from its commitment guidelines that say it will only accept structural remedies with an upfront buyer.

22 February 2023