Antitrust merger review
Antitrust merger review in Trade and Geopolitical Risk is no longer a purely domestic compliance exercise. The U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division and the European Commission Directorate-General for Competition have both signaled heightened scrutiny of cross-border deals with supply chain or dual-use technology components, and the Japan Fair Trade Commission has added its own parallel review timelines to transactions touching semiconductor and critical materials sectors. Compliance teams at multinationals are now coordinating filing strategies across three or more jurisdictions simultaneously, with geopolitical exposure factored into clearance risk assessments from day one.
Watch
- DOJ Antitrust Division's revised HSR filing requirements taking effect February 2025
- European Commission Phase II investigations involving foreign-state-linked acquirers in critical sectors
- JFTC review timelines for semiconductor and rare earth transactions exceeding 30-day standard windows
- Parallel antitrust and national security review overlap in deals flagged by CFIUS
Recent material activity in Trade & Geopolitical Risk
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OFAC designates 14 entities linked to Russian defense procurement network
The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control added 14 entities and 6 individuals to the Specially Designated Nationals list for their roles in procuring critical technology components for Russia's defense i…
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BIS adds 22 Chinese semiconductor entities to Entity List for advanced chip diversion
The Bureau of Industry and Security expanded export controls targeting Chinese semiconductor entities found to be diverting advanced computing chips through third-country intermediaries. New license requirements affect i…
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