In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen lockdown measures of varying duration and severity being imposed in countries across ASEAN. Like other government authorities, competition regulators themselves have had to adapt to deal with the new "normal" and to ensure that their administration and enforcement of competition laws continues, to the extent possible.
One area of concern for businesses involved in ongoing (or exploring potential) M&A transactions is whether transaction timelines may be delayed by the extension or worse, suspension, of merger control review processes – particularly in "mandatory" filing jurisdictions where a transaction cannot close without clearance from the competition regulator.
This update provides a quick snapshot of the latest announcements that have been put out by competition authorities in major ASEAN jurisdictions which have merger control regimes – businesses involved in or exploring potential M&A transactions involving targets operating in these jurisdictions should consider these factors when anticipating potential delays to transaction timelines.
If you would like information and/or assistance on the above or any other area of law, you may wish to contact the Partner at WongPartnership whom you normally work with or any of the following Partners:
Ameera ASHRAF
Head – Competition & Regulatory
d +65 6416 8113
e ameera.ashraf@wongpartnership.com
Click here to view Ameera's CV.
CHAN Jia Hui
Partner – Competition & Regulatory
d +65 6416 2794
e jiahui.chan@wongpartnership.com
Click here to view Jia Hui's CV.