THE Competition Commission has published
final guidelines for the assessment of public interest provisions in
merger regulations under the Competition Act, saying these have a
bearing on SA’s high unemployment rate and the poor state of the
domestic economy.
The commission says the guidelines seek to clarify its approach to analysing mergers. It obtained input from stakeholders including legal practitioners, business and civil society. It also held workshops to get further input, and has revised the guidelines to incorporate this.
"Certain key cases brought before the competition authorities sparked debate on the assessment standard for public interest issues," the commission said in a Government Gazette released on Thursday.
"Whilst the Competition Appeal Court and the Competition Tribunal have given valuable guidance in certain areas of public interest considerations, there is still a large area in respect of which the law remains undeveloped," the commission said.
The announcement comes as a dispute rages between the Food and Allied Workers Union (Fawu), and merging parties SABMiller and Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev), which are proposing to create the world’s largest brewer in a $108bn deal.
Fawu wants an early payout of the South African Breweries Zenzele broad-based black economic empowerment transaction, or a once-off payment of R165,000 for each of the brewer’s 9,000 or so employees who are Fawu members.
The once-off payment would cost AB-InBev R1.5bn and should be seen against the $2.1bn that 1,700 senior managers and executives stand to make from the early exercise of their share options and bonuses, Fawu said.
The Competition Commission said the guidelines marked an important milestone in merger regulation in SA since the commission’s establishment 16 years ago.
It said its evaluation of previous mergers showed that parties to merger proceedings often provided insufficient information on public interest considerations, especially in relation to employment.
The guidelines would also help determine whether a merger was likely to substantially prevent or obstruct competition, in the context of whether there were any technological, efficiency or pro-competitive gains that would outweigh the negative effects on competition.
The commission also said in the case of determining whether a merger can or cannot be justified on public interest grounds, it or the tribunal must consider the effect that the merger would have on a particular industrial sector or region, including employment; the ability of small businesses controlled or owned by historically disadvantaged persons to become competitive; and the ability of national industries to compete in international markets
"With the increased focus on public interest considerations in merger regulation, the guidelines provide much-needed clarity on how the Competition Commission will consider public interest grounds in assessing mergers. We encourage business and practitioners to follow these guidelines when filing mergers in SA," acting deputy commissioner Hardin Ratshisusu said.
With Ann Crotty
The commission says the guidelines seek to clarify its approach to analysing mergers. It obtained input from stakeholders including legal practitioners, business and civil society. It also held workshops to get further input, and has revised the guidelines to incorporate this.
"Certain key cases brought before the competition authorities sparked debate on the assessment standard for public interest issues," the commission said in a Government Gazette released on Thursday.
"Whilst the Competition Appeal Court and the Competition Tribunal have given valuable guidance in certain areas of public interest considerations, there is still a large area in respect of which the law remains undeveloped," the commission said.
The announcement comes as a dispute rages between the Food and Allied Workers Union (Fawu), and merging parties SABMiller and Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev), which are proposing to create the world’s largest brewer in a $108bn deal.
Fawu wants an early payout of the South African Breweries Zenzele broad-based black economic empowerment transaction, or a once-off payment of R165,000 for each of the brewer’s 9,000 or so employees who are Fawu members.
The once-off payment would cost AB-InBev R1.5bn and should be seen against the $2.1bn that 1,700 senior managers and executives stand to make from the early exercise of their share options and bonuses, Fawu said.
The Competition Commission said the guidelines marked an important milestone in merger regulation in SA since the commission’s establishment 16 years ago.
It said its evaluation of previous mergers showed that parties to merger proceedings often provided insufficient information on public interest considerations, especially in relation to employment.
The guidelines would also help determine whether a merger was likely to substantially prevent or obstruct competition, in the context of whether there were any technological, efficiency or pro-competitive gains that would outweigh the negative effects on competition.
The commission also said in the case of determining whether a merger can or cannot be justified on public interest grounds, it or the tribunal must consider the effect that the merger would have on a particular industrial sector or region, including employment; the ability of small businesses controlled or owned by historically disadvantaged persons to become competitive; and the ability of national industries to compete in international markets
"With the increased focus on public interest considerations in merger regulation, the guidelines provide much-needed clarity on how the Competition Commission will consider public interest grounds in assessing mergers. We encourage business and practitioners to follow these guidelines when filing mergers in SA," acting deputy commissioner Hardin Ratshisusu said.
With Ann Crotty
No comments:
Post a Comment