Merger transactions climb 72%

The number of merger transactions notified to the Competition Authority in 2004 was up 72% on the previous year, according to a study by leading law firm McCann FitzGerald.

Of the notified deals, 96% were cleared by the Competition Authority in the first phase of the review process, but 2004 was also the year in which the Authority first prohibited a proposed merger under its new merger review regime.

In total, 81 transactions were notified to the Competition Authority in 2004, compared to 47 in 2003.

Gerald FitzGerald, head of McCann FitzGerald's EC and Competition Group said: "This reflects an upturn in the number of deals being done both internationally and in Ireland, and may also indicate an increased level of awareness of the Irish merger control rules on the part of legal advisors in Ireland and abroad."

The majority of deal types notified to the Authority where foreign-to-foreign deals (63%), followed by private equity investments (23%), joint ventures (10%) and business/asset acquisitions (4%).