Challenges and Sources of Divergence in Cross-border Merger Review

Roundtable

Date: 2 December 2024
Time: 14:45 - 18:00
Location: OECD, Paris

About

In a globalised and digitised world economy, there has been an increase in the number of mergers transactions that have an impact in more than one country. For competition authorities who are responsible for reviewing merger transactions, this has created new challenges and introduced more complexity to their merger review procedures and analyses.

In December 2024, the OECD Global Forum on Competition held a roundtable on cross-border mergers to explored these challenges, explain the reasons why competition authorities may arrive at different decisions and the role international co-operation plays in each phase of a cross-border merger review.

This page contains all session information and materials.

Key takeaways from the roundtable

⛓️‍💥 𝗗𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀: Divergence in competitive conditions may lead to different assessments of cross-border mergers. Factors such as local market structures, consumer preferences, and regulatory environments play a significant role in shaping these decisions. Different competitive conditions across jurisdictions can lead to varying outcomes in merger reviews.

🌐 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼-𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 : Effective co-operation between competition authorities is essential. The discussions underscored challenges such as misaligned review timelines and the complexities of sharing confidential information, and what steps jurisdictions are taking to address them.

⚖️ 𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗱𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻: Effective remedy design requires deep understanding and cooperation between competition authorities. The session highlighted the need for tailored strategies that consider the diverse legal, economic, and political environments of different jurisdictions, and the need to ensure remedies are compatible globally.

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