Merger Control, FDI and FSR: Lessons learned from recent deals

As our regular readers know, M&A deals in Europe face a complex interplay of merger control, foreign investment control and the Foreign Subsidies Regulations. Three very recent transactions illustrate how these regimes shape deal strategy and timelines. This post will dive into initial lessons to be learned from Universal/Downtown Music, Snam/Open Grid Europe and ADNOC/Covestro. … Continue reading Merger Control, FDI and FSR: Lessons learned from recent deals →

Update on Foreign Investment Control – Conference Report

September means the start of autumn, days getting shorter while skies often remain blue and the air crisp. Since two years, September also means time for the annual conference of the German “Forum Investitionsprüfung” – an association/platform of foreign investment control practitioners. Here is a summary of my the main takeaways. This post will spare … Continue reading Update on Foreign Investment Control – Conference Report →

Outbound investments into AI to be screened in line with updated matchday calendar

OK, the title was only meant to catch your attention. And to foreshadow three – albeit separate – topics of this post: AI and antitrust, a screening regime for outbound investments, and a hefty antitrust sports battle. New developments on all of these topics warrant attention. Rise of the machines: A global approach to AI … Continue reading Outbound investments into AI to be screened in line with updated matchday calendar →

Third-party interventions in FIC proceedings: Unforeseen risks and hidden opportunities

These days, governmental bodies often have a say in whether foreign investments can proceed, particularly when national security or public order might be at stake. This is where Foreign Investment Control (FIC) comes in. While the influence of third parties in merger control proceedings is well-known, the potential impact of third-party involvement in FIC proceedings … Continue reading Third-party interventions in FIC proceedings: Unforeseen risks and hidden opportunities →

New German FDI association – Learnings from the first annual meeting

Practitioners often criticize the lack of transparency in FDI proceedings in Germany (and elsewhere). The fact that decisions are not made public further adds to that lack of transparency. So, the inaugural meeting of the German “Forum Investitionsprüfung”, which was also attended by many representatives from German ministries, presented a valuable opportunity to gain insights … Continue reading New German FDI association – Learnings from the first annual meeting →

Germany blocks the full acquisition of an already majority-owned company

News broke yesterday that the German government prohibited the acquisition of 45% of the shares in a German satellite company by a Chinese acquirer. The notable twist: The acquirer already held 53% of the shares in the target. Kleo Connect is a German start-up that wants to provide global satellite data communications. 53% of its … Continue reading Germany blocks the full acquisition of an already majority-owned company →

Leaky towards the press, rigid towards China: German FDI review in movement

German foreign investment control has taken centre stage in the last two weeks: After the German government just about (partially) approved a limited Chinese investment in the Hamburg port, this week it has set out to prohibit two Chinese acquisitions in the semiconductor space. Not only the number of difficult reviews in a very short … Continue reading Leaky towards the press, rigid towards China: German FDI review in movement →

Three learnings from the EU’s Foreign Investment Control Report

The European Commission has published its Second Annual Report on the screening of foreign direct investments into the EU. The report provides an overview of the current status of foreign investment control, and is accompanied by a (data heavy) Staff Working Document. Here are three learnings from both documents. Just as a reminder: In the … Continue reading Three learnings from the EU’s Foreign Investment Control Report →

Novel or unresolved – The Commission’s draft informal guidance notice

A bit overshadowed by other big legislative processes (we know what we are talking about), the Commission has also been actively updating its notices currently not so much in the focus of the public eye. Having made some progress on the simplified procedure in merger control cases already, the Commission recently presented an updated draft … Continue reading Novel or unresolved – The Commission’s draft informal guidance notice →

Cross-border cooperation of regulators – a trend for many topics

While cooperations between competing undertakings stay under heavy scrutiny, there seems to be a trend of regulators cooperating cross-border. Those cooperations often concern (a growing number of) topics that are perceived to be wider than national, and that regulators might think can only be properly tackled together. Here is a rundown of fora which have … Continue reading Cross-border cooperation of regulators – a trend for many topics →