Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

Merger control definition

What does Merger control mean? Merger control is the review of mergers, acquisitions and certain joint ventures by competition authorities to prevent anti-competitive effects and to clear, condition or prohibit deals. In the UK, it is governed by the enterprise Act 2002 (as amended). The competition and markets authority (CMA) may review completed or anticipated deals where a 'relevant merger situation' arises: enterprises cease to be distinct and either the target’s UK turnover exceeds £70m or the parties meet/increase a 25% share of supply in the UK (or a substantial part). Notification is voluntary, but the CMA can call in transactions and impose...

South African merger control: thresholds, notification and suspensory regime, public interest tests, penalties, and 2024-2025 developments including internal restructurings, digital platforms inquiry, and sector regulator interactions

Published by a LexisNexis Competition expert

Practice notes

NOTE—to check whether notification thresholds in South Africa and worldwide are satisfied, please consult: Where to Notify.

1. What recent changes have affected the South African Merger control regime, and are any further updates anticipated in the next year? Are there any other pressing merger control issues in South Africa?

Amendments to the South African Competition Act

On 12 July 2019, President Cyril Ramaphosa issued a notice in the Government Gazette, which immediately brought into operation selected provisions of the Competition Amendment Act 18 of 2018 (Amendment Act 2018). Provisions dealing with matters such as buyer power and price Discrimination were excluded. These measures amend the Competition Act, No. 89 of 1998 (Competition Act 1998) and, taken together, form the Competition Act 1998 (as amended).

Key changes now in force include:

administrative penalties: section 59 of the Competition Act 1998 has been revised to authorise the Competition Tribunal (Tribunal) to levy administrative penalties of up to a maximum of 10% of turnover for first-time infringements of all prohibited practices.

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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