A blog about the intersection of antitrust, foreign investment control, politics, and everything in between
This year, a number of senior officials moved from some of Europe’s most important antitrust regulators into private practice. While these have not been the first times that high-ranking officials switched sides, several departures across Europe took place around the same time lately and regulators seem to deal with them quite differently.
With Newcastle United having been acquired by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund and many commentators highlighting that something similar could not happen in Germany, we will check whether and how antitrust comes into play when it comes to the acquisition of football clubs. For many years, English football fans have been used to “grief and … Continue reading Newcastle, MBS & 50+1 – How does antitrust come into play?
Gas prices are rising in Europe and some are requesting an antitrust investigation into Russian Gazprom. Time to look at past cases against the company and their outcomes. As temperatures are getting colder, gas prices have almost tripled in Europe since the middle of this year. About 37% of EU gas imports stem from Russia, … Continue reading Gas price hike in Europe – the Gazprom cases
The European Commission has announced its answer to the global chip crisis: A number of measures put together in what is called the European Chips Act. We take a brief look at the Commission’s plans and how they might influence ongoing and future deal reviews in the industry. Only recently, Tobias had a look at … Continue reading The European Chips Act – a political industry plan paralleling merger reviews
Part I of our series looking at who is responsible for making decisions within certain antitrust authorities and the extent to which there might be political oversight. The extent of (potential) political influence on the decision-making process and enforcement priorities of antitrust authorities is closely linked to structural questions. First and foremost, it is decisive … Continue reading Antitrust and the Political System – Part I: Germany
The Council of the EU has denied public access to documents relating to the Digital Markets Act. The reasoning is remarkable: The Council is afraid that disclosure would lead to a level of tech lobbying that would undermine the decision-making process. This comes at a time where tech is outspending all other sectors in EU … Continue reading The Digital Markets Act: EU Member States afraid of tech lobbying
This post takes a closer look at three of the transactions currently undergoing review in Europe with the heaviest political implications, and on what can be drawn from them. With M&A activity on record levels, times will be far from boring for antitrust and foreign investment control regulators. While transactions will be assessed on the … Continue reading A look at three of Europe’s most political transactions right now
After almost 16 years as chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel will retire after the election in September, making the race to power more open than ever. This piece summarizes the antitrust plans of four parties that seem to have a shot at being part of the next government. Status quo At least based on recent … Continue reading Election incoming: What will change in German antitrust?
There has been lots of talk about the politisation of antitrust in recent years. About time to start a blog on this. So: Yes, Antitrustpolitics! This is a pet project of me and my partners Paul and Timo at law firm Rocan, which we are very excited about. The blog will be dedicated to observing … Continue reading Antitrustpolitics?
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