20 Sep 2017

Competition Law Update

by Jennifer Finnigan, Partner, Durban,

On 15 September 2017, the Minister of Economic Development announced that the Competition Commission’s merger filing fees will increase on 1 October 2017 from R100 000 to R150 000 for an intermediate merger and from R350 000 to R500 000 for a large merger. The merger threshold for an intermediate merger also change on 1 October 2017. A transaction only has to be reported as an intermediate merger if the asset value or turnover of the transferred firm is R100 million or more and if the combined asset value and turnover of the acquiring and transferred firms is R600 million or more.  Previously the transferred firm threshold was R80 million and the combined threshold was R560 million.  The thresholds for a large merger remain unchanged.  The regulations governing the calculation of asset value and turnover for the purposes of the merger threshold have been changed by replacing references to GAAP with references to IFRS and by making it clear that the relevant values of those which apply during the year immediately preceding that in which the merger takes place. The regulations also make it clear that the audited financial statements which must be used when calculating with a merger is reportable of those which applied at the end of the financial year immediately preceding that during which the merger takes place.