Competition Commission of India notified Combinations Regulations, 2024
In view of the significant changes introduced by the Competition Amendment Act, CCI proposed the draft Competition Commission of India (Combinations) Regulations, 2023 for public consultation and now after careful examination of comments as well as reference to international best practices, CCI has today notified the Competition Commission of India (Combinations) Regulations, 2024.
The Regulations provide for Value of transaction and criteria for substantial business operations in India; Exercise of rights in case of open offer and acquisitions on stock exchanges; Procedure for review of combinations; Procedure for modification to the proposed combination; Appointment of independent agencies to oversee modification; among other things.
The filing fee for Form I has been increased from Rs. 20 lakhs to Rs. 30 lakhs, and the fee for Form II has been increased from Rs. 65 lakhs to Rs. 90 lakhs under the Regulations.
The exclusion of the Rs. 500 crore monetary thresholds for Digital Services entities when determining whether they have “Substantial Business Operations” in India will have a direct bearing on transactions in the digital space. This is something the CCI is clearly interested in covering under the amended merger control provisions.
