A total of 82 mergers were notified to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission last year, an almost 21% increase from 2023.
All mergers and acquisitions that meet specific financial thresholds must be notified to the CCPC, which then assesses the transactions to determine whether or not they could result in the substantial lessening of competition in any market for goods or services in the State.
The CCPC’s annual Mergers and Acquisitions Report for 2024 show that it issued 77 determinations including seven in relation to cases carried over from 2023.
The commission made 55 determinations under its Simplified Merger Notification Procedure (SMNP) and these mergers were cleared within 13.3 days of notification, on average.
The professional services sector (including legal, accountancy, consultancy, engineering, and veterinary) was the most prominent sector, with 13 merger notifications received last year.
It said the average time to issue a determination on a non-extended Phase 1 investigation was 16.3 working days.
The CCPS noted that three media mergers were notified to it last year, down from five in 2023.
Formal commitments to address competition concerns were obtained in respect of two cases last year – the LloydsPharmacy/McCabes Pharmacy merger deal and the Phey Topco/Trasmore deal.
In March, the CCPC blocked the proposed purchase of the former Quickpark carpark site at Dublin Airport by daa, after its investigation found that the deal would substantially lessen competition in car parking services at Dublin Airport, as daa would own over 90% of the public car parking spaces if the purchase went ahead.
Úna Butler, Member of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, said 2024 was a busy year for merger review in Ireland.
She said that despite the 20% increase in the volume of notifications, the average time to review mergers has continued to decrease, enabling the Commission to focus its resources more effectively on those mergers which have the potential to raise competition concerns.
“There were also more Phase 2 investigations in 2024 than in any year previously. Phase 2 investigations were required in a wide range of sectors including car parks, aggregates, communications infrastructure, and retail pharmacies,” she noted.
“Ireland’s merger review regime ensures that mergers which threaten to substantially lessen competition only proceed where appropriate measures to address these concerns are implemented. Where that does not happen, the CCPC will prohibit the merger. Our goal is to safeguard competition for the benefit of consumers,” she added.
