Antitrust authorities continued to disrupt M&A in 2023, frustrating more deals and stepping up scrutiny of digital and private equity transactions.

Read Time

8 mins

Published Date

Apr 9, 2024

In this report we examine how antitrust authorities particularly in the U.S., EU and U.K. continue to take a tough approach to merger control enforcement and consider the impact on transaction timetables and the allocation of execution risk. We explore the complexity created by new and expanding foreign investment regimes and the EUs foreign subsidy review tool. We also look ahead to what dealmakers should watch out for in 2024.

Summary

Regulators have focused their attention on mergers in the digital and pharmaceuticals industries, while also scrutinizing below-threshold private equity acquisitions, transport and energy deals.

In technology, which saw 20% of deals blocked in 2023, authorities are looking at the impact on ecosystems, innovation and potential competition. Transactions resulting in data concentration as well as those involving AI are also in the spotlight, while the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) and forthcoming U.K. equivalent will require “digital gatekeepers” to submit information about all deals involving digital services or that enable the collection of data.

As countries work to meet their green transition targets, we expect sustainability and environmental arguments to feature more heavily in merger control reviews, potentially overriding competition concerns. But Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Kahn has said that environmental, social or governance commitments will generally not be considered as a remedy to concerns.

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