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Private Equity & Financial Sponsors: Antitrust and Foreign Investment Outlook 2022
The UK NSI Act is here: what to expect
After much anticipation, the UK’s National Security and Investment Act (NSIA) entered into force on 4 January 2022, heralding a far-reaching UK investment screening regime. Investors wait to see how the regime’s broad powers will ultimately be substantively exercised in terms of the breadth of application of national security but a material impact on contractual risk allocation, transaction completion timelines and disclosure of investors’ interests should be expected by financial investors.
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New antitrust priorities under the Biden Administration has private equity in the cross-hairs
The Biden Administration has made clear that a shift to more aggressive antitrust enforcement is under way in the United States. With private equity investment models firmly in the FTC’s crosshairs more intense scrutiny of transactions and their impact on competition can be expected.
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EU foreign subsidies regulation to bring further scrutiny for non-EU investors
With the EC flagging concerns about foreign subsidies that distort the EU market, 2022 is likely to bring dealmakers a new regulatory hurdle to consider when conducting European transactions. Investment funds with links to non-EU governments or those that receive other forms of beneficial treatment (e.g. tax exemptions) can soon expect heightened scrutiny and an un-level playing field in auctions as a result. Depending on whether your fund is state backed or state linked (or not) this could be a boon or a curse for private equity.
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The European Commission’s Article 22 reboot: living with new uncertainty
The European Commission’s repurposing of Article 22 EUMR to capture any deal with adverse competitive effects irrespective of EU turnover introduces a further layer of potential uncertainty for dealmakers. Investors will need to consider carefully the associated call-in risk and how best to address the potentially significant impact for candidate transactions.
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Could highly leveraged acquisition models be a merger control problem?
Competition regulators have recently flagged concerns regarding the impact of highly leveraged acquisitions on the competitiveness of the acquired business (and hence competition more generally). While current legal tests provide some constraint against regulators pursuing such theories in a merger control context closer scrutiny may develop as the political landscape continues to shift.
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Ever-increasing antitrust enforcement puts parental liability under the spotlight
With antitrust enforcement expected to make a strong come-back in 2022, the evolving EU practice on “no fault” liability for shareholders and subsidiaries will be important to keep in mind. Managing portfolio company compliance and conducting detailed due diligence are important tools to manage potential exposure.
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Explore our Year to Come 2022 and Year in Review 2021 series across 20+ jurisdictions and a number of legal topics.